SALMOND - ONLY A VOTE FOR SNP CAN PROTECT SCOTLAND

SALMOND - ONLY A VOTE FOR SNP CAN PROTECT SCOTLAND

WHISTLE-STOP TOUR IN FINAL CAMPAIGN PUSH

SNP leader Alex Salmond is today (Mon) making a whistle-stop rail tour of key constituencies, as the election campaign enters its final days.

Mr Salmond, who will visit seats including Dundee West, Ochil and Falkirk, said the Tories' admission that they plan to use votes for other London parties as a Scottish mandate for any Conservative administration had handed the initiative to the SNP.

Mr Salmond said: "The momentum is with the SNP as we count down to polling day, and we intend to push home that advantage in the final days of the campaign. Labour's campaign has imploded, with voters deserting them - and only the SNP can protect Scotland from the cuts agenda of all the London parties.

"The Tories have now admitted that they would see support for Labour and the Liberals in Scotland as a pro-Union vote that the Conservatives would try to use as a mandate to rule in Scotland, even if they have no Scots MPs. And that is something people contemplating a vote for Labour or the LibDems should bear in mind.

"Scotland has moved on from the days when the Tories tried to run the country against the wishes of the vast majority of Scots. We have our own Parliament and our own Government now, and there will be no turning the clock back.

"By saying they will effectively depend on Labour and Lib Dem seats in Scotland for any mandate, the Tories have handed the initiative to the SNP in the last days of this campaign.

"The message is now crystal clear - only the SNP can protect Scotland, and a vote for any of the other parties simply plays into the hands of those who intend to slash the nation's budget.

"We are asking the voters who are deserting Labour not just to sit at home, but to come out and vote for SNP local and national champions who will help protect their communities and the country as a whole from the savage cuts agenda of all the London parties.

"A balanced parliament can be the bulwark against those cuts. In the last few days of this campaign, there is everything to play for in Scotland - and if Scots voters want a balanced parliament, redolent with opportunity for Scotland, they should vote SNP."