NICOLA Sturgeon has made an impassioned plea to Ed Miliband to join the SNP to lock out David Cameron and the Tories from power, warning him that if he refused, then "people will never forgive you".

 

The third televised leader's debate held in the Westminster Central Methodist Hall covered issues of housing, immigration, Trident and the economy but the most passionate exchanges were between the SNP and Labour leaders over a possible post-election deal.

Ms Sturgeon said she was making Mr Miliband a direct "offer": to join the progressive alliance to end the Conservative leader's time in Downing Street and chart a better way forward for public services across the UK.

But the Labour leader insisted he had "fundamental differences" with the SNP, which wanted another referendum to break up Britain, that would be disastrous for its people.

He said: "We have profound differences between us. That's why I'm not going to have a coalition with the SNP. Because I'm never going to put at risk the unity of our UK. Why? Because I care too much about the working people of our country. It will be a disaster for us to start competing against each other, driving down wages, dismantling the basic state pensions and dismantling our country. It's a No I'm afraid."

Ms Sturgeon hit back, saying the issue of independence was last year's debate; this year's was the General Election.

"This election is about getting rid of the Tories and, Ed, whatever differences you have with me, surely they are as nothing to the differences both of us have with the Tories. This is about how we deliver better politics not just for people in Scotland but right across the UK."

The First Minister insisted the election was an opportunity to seize an alternative to austerity, to protect our public services, to create more and better jobs, to have a higher minimum wage, to protect our NHS.

"Ed's going into this election not promising the money the NHS needs. What I'm saying is I can help Labour be bolder, to deliver the change we really need...It's about delivering real change, not pretend change for people across this country. Don't turn your back on that Ed and let David Cameron back into Downing Street," she declared to applause.

But Mr Miliband accused Ms Sturgeon of hypocrisy, saying on the one hand she wanted to help Labour but on the other was urging people to vote "anyone but Labour".

"For every one less Labour MP, the likelihood is we will end up with David Cameron and Nick Clegg - not on the stage tonight - perhaps with a bit of Nigel thrown in. The truth is you want to gamble getting rid of a Tory government, I can guarantee that we can get rid of a Tory government if you vote Labour in this election."

In response, Ms Sturgeon insisted the reality was that if on May 8 there were more anti-Tory MPs in the House of Commons than Tory MPs, then "if we work together, we can lock David Cameron out of Downing Street".

To cheering, she then challenged her opponent, asking: "So tell me tonight, is it the case that you would rather see David Cameron go back into Downing Street than work with the SNP? Surely that cannot be your position Ed?"

But the Labour leader insisted he had fought Tories all his life unlike the SNP, which presaged the Tory Government in 1979 and he told Ms Sturgeon unlike "your leader Alex Salmond" who said vote Lib Dem in 2010 and there was a Lib-Con Coalition. "You've fought Labour all your life Nicola. I just don't buy it," declared Mr Miliband.

But as the atmosphere intensified, Ms Sturgeon replied: "I was nine years old in 1979. This is 2015. We have a chance to kick David Cameron out of Downing Street, don't turn your back on it. People will never forgive you."

Earlier, the Labour leader was accused of "letting the Tories off the hook" as he faced demands from the leaders of the smaller parties urging him to form a "progressive" alliance to run the country.

Mr Miliband hit back, insisting there was a "huge difference" between his manifesto and that offered by Mr Cameron, rejecting claims he offered voters only a "Tory-lite" alternative.

The Labour leader argued that he was offering a "fair and balanced" solution to balancing the books and claimed how some on the panel were denying that there was a deficit problem to deal with.

He once again attacked the SNP leadership over what he said the Institute for Fiscal Studies had identified as its £7.6bn black hole based on its policy of giving up the Barnett Formula and having Full Fiscal Autonomy in its drive towards independence.

"I don't want to break up the country, I want to run it in a different way," said Mr Miliband.

The absence of the Prime Minister was remarked upon by all the five leaders with Ms Sturgeon receiving a round of applause when she said it was "a disgrace" he was not there to defend his government's record.

On Trident, Nigel Farage made clear that in a very dangerous world the UK Government needed to retain it and keep to a two per cent of GDP spend while Mr Miliband also insisted he would retain Britain's independent nuclear deterrent in such an unstable world where no one knew what the threats to the country would be in 10, 20 or 30 years' time.

But Ms Sturgeon, Natalie Bennett for the Greens and Leanne Wood for Plaid Cymru were all in agreement against renewing Trident.

The FM insisted spending £100bn on renewing the nuclear deterrent showed the wrong priorities and that more should be spent on conventional forces. But she stressed, again to applause, that childcare, health and education would win over nuclear weapons any day.

Elsewhere, the Ukip leader at one point accused the BBC of stuffing the audience with left wing supporters, to which the host David Dimbleby insisted it had been independently chosen. "The real audience is at home," he declared, to which Ms Sturgeon later quipped how the Ukip leader was trying to win friends and influence people.

On the problem of housing shortages, Mr Farage mentioned the increase in migrant workers, at which the SNP leader accused him of seeing every problem being down to the "bogeyman" of immigration. Ms Bennett, who described herself as an immigrant, insisted that migrant workers should not be denigrated but praised for the wealth they helped create for Britain.

Next Thursday, Mr Cameron, Mr Clegg and Mr Miliband will take questions separately from the BBC Question Time audience in the last of the UKwide televised election leaders' events.