Pro-Scottish independence protesters brandished “Red Tories Out” placards and shouted “traitors” ahead of a speech by Ed Miliband in Glasgow.
Mr Miliband was in the Scottish city for a rally with Jim Murphy, the leader of Scottish Labour, to urge people to vote Labour at the election, not SNP on Friday.
It is a mark of how extreme opposition to the Labour Party now is among many Scottish voters and how much ground the party has to make up before the General Election.
Recent polls have suggested that Labour will be wiped out in Scotland, with the SNP winning more than 50 of the country’s 59 parliamentary seats.
In his speech Mr Miliband championed his party’s commitment to a progressive programme in government.
“Our priority is social justice. If you want social justice not separatism, I say to the people of Scotland vote for it, vote Labour, vote for a Labour government,” the Leader of the Opposition said.
He promised to abolish the so-called bedroom tax as his first act in government, “not just in Scotland. But in England. In Wales. Right across out United Kingdom”.
If he becomes the next prime minister, Mr Miliband also said he would vow to make the Scottish Parliament “one of the most powerful devolved parliaments in the world”.
But SNP deputy leader Stewart Hosie said: “Mr Miliband sacrificed any claim to progressive politics on Thursday night, when he indicated that he would prefer to let the Tories back in to continue their cuts and damage to society for five more years, rather than work with the SNP to keep them out.
“That represents a further abandonment of principle by Labour. It is clear that electing a big group of SNP MPs next Thursday is the way to lock the Tories out of Downing Street, and achieve the decisive position needed to deliver these progressive policies.”
Additional reporting by PA
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments