NICOLA Sturgeon will again reach out to Labour voters across the UK when she faces Ed Miliband in BBC 1's 'challengers' election debate tonight.
The Labour and SNP leaders will line up against Ukip's Nigel Farage, the Greens' Natalie Bennett and Plaid Cymru leader Leanne Wood in the 90 minutes showdown hosted by David Dimbleby.
Ms Sturgeon will talk up the SNP's chances of holding the balance of power after May 7 and forging a "progressive alliance" to end austerity across the UK.
Jim Murphy, the Scottish Labour leader, yesterday urged Mr Miliband to press the SNP leader on her plans for full fiscal autonomy, which the IFS think tank has warned would leave Scotland £7.6billion worse off.
He said the debate was an "important" opportunity for Labour to claw back support from the SNP in Scotland.
Speaking ahead of the debate, Ms Sturgeon said: "The last debate exposed the Westminster establishment parties' cuts agenda and their consensus on sticking with austerity.
"People in Scotland, and the rest of the UK want to hear an alternative to that vision, and that is why the SNP's message is one that is resonating with people right across these islands."
"A powerful group of SNP MPs will protect Scotland's national interests and give us real power at Westminster, while also helping to deliver the kind of policies that so many people across the whole of the UK want."
Ms Sturgeon has tried to appeal to Labour voters south of the Border in an attempt to make it harder for Ed Miliband to turn his back on a possible deal with the SNP after May 7.
To ensure balance, tonight's programme will be followed by a 30-minute reaction programme, also on BBC1, hosted by Emily Maitlis and featuring representatives from the Conservatives, the Lib Dems and the Democratic Unionist Party.
Facebook yesterday revealed that before and after the first leaders' debate earlier this month, posts, comments and 'likes' relating to SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon more than doubled, suggesting that she was the largest online beneficiary of the seven-way discussion.
Bookmaker William Hill made Mr Farage their 5/4 favourite to win tonight's debate.
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