Nicola Sturgeon threw her weight behind key Labour policies as she launched the SNP’s election manifesto today.
The SNP leader said that her party backed a mansion tax and a bankers’ bonus tax. The SNP would also back Labour on restoring the 50p top rate of tax, she said.
Launching the manifesto at a climbing centre in Edinburgh, Ms Sturgeon said: "If the SNP emerges from this election in a position of influence we will exercise that influence responsibly and constructively, and we will always seek to exercise it in the interests of people not just in Scotland but across the whole of the UK."
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Addressing voters outside of Scotland, she stated: "Although you can't vote SNP your views do matter to me and you have a right to know what to expect of my party if the votes of the Scottish people give us influence in a hung parliament."
The SNP’s election manifesto also made the case for an end to austerity across the United Kingdom, and proposed £24bn of additional investment in the NHS.
Among other measures, the SNP manifesto pledges to:
- Increase spending by 0.5% a year, providing an extra £140bn to support the economy and public services
- Set an annual UK target to build 100,000 affordable homes
- Increase the minimum wage to £8.70 by 2020
- Restore the 50p top income tax rate for those earning over £150,000
Ahead of the launch, the first minister told the Guardian the SNP planned to "change the direction of a government without bringing a government down" in the next parliament.
Meanwhile, David Cameron has said that the Treasury and Cabinet Office would be asked to conduct a yearly review "of the impact of all devolved policies on the rest of the country" if the Conservatives lead the next government.
In a speech this morning, the prime minister said the annual study would "look at what effect Scottish government policies are having" including on tax, business rates, tuition fees and energy policy.
"To be absolutely clear, this is not about a UK government stopping the Scottish government from using its powers as it sees fit or to do things differently," he said.
"It is also not about reopening discussion about the Barnett formula – our commitment to retain it as the basis for determining Scotland’s funding from the Treasury is clear and unequivocal.
"This is about making sure we understand the impact that devolution is having and make sure that rest of the country never unwittingly loses out."