Ed Miliband’s response to Nicola Sturgeon’s appeal for Labour and the SNP to form an anti-Tory alliance (“It’s a no, I’m afraid”) has been presented by some as a rejection of any possible deal. But his preceding words make it clear that he was again only ruling out a formal coalition between the two parties: “I have fought the Tories all my life. We have profound differences. That why I’m not going to have a coalition with the SNP. I’m not going to put at risk the unity of the United Kingdom. It’s a no, I’m afraid.”
This leaves open the possibility of a confidence and supply arrangement between Labour and the SNP under which the latter would agree to support the former in confidence votes (“confidence”) and Budgets (“supply”). Sturgeon said this morning: “I suppose you have to ask Ed Miliband what he meant. He’s ruled out a coalition, I’ve always said there isn’t going to be a formal coalition between Labour and the SNP. But let’s just think about three weeks from today, 8th of May, if Ed Miliband and the SNP between us have more MPs than David Cameron has, is Ed Miliband really saying that he would stand and watch David Cameron get back into Downing St? If that is Ed Miliband’s position then let him come out and say that. And people across Scotland and across the UK can draw their own conclusions.”
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