Final Scottish questions before election sees Labour and Conservatives round on SNP

During the final Scottish questions session at Westminster before polling day, Jim Murphy said the "vast majority" of people in the country wanted to remain in the Union.

But the SNP's Pete Wishart accused the Government of failing to act on the Calman Commission's proposals to strengthen the Scottish Parliament and said both Labour and the Tories were planning deep cuts in public spending.

Tory Eleanor Laing (Epping Forest) said: "The best future for all the people of Scotland is not as an isolated small entity but as part of a strong, prosperous United Kingdom."

Mr Murphy agreed, saying: "The fact is that all of us who love Scotland, all of us who are patriotic about our country, know that it's a fantastic place to live and bring up a family, with a phenomenal history.

"But part of our future and part of our destiny remains Scotland proud, an equal part of the United Kingdom.

"And that's not just my view, it's the view of the vast majority of people all across Scotland."

Mr Wishart (Perth and North Perthshire) said there was "commonality of purpose" between Labour and Conservatives "in bringing cuts to Scotland".

He said: "We were promised action on the Calman proposals back in the Queen's Speech in November. Since then? Nothing. Zilch. Not a peep.

"This is a Government who have no intention of bringing forward these proposals and would rather introduce cuts rather than Calman to

Scotland."

Mr Murphy said the SNP was using "desperate tactics" and was a party "that no one takes seriously in Scotland in this General Election".

He continued: "The only thing Scotland gets if it votes SNP in the General Election is a Tory government.

"Because the SNP brought Mrs Thatcher to power and they are desperate to remove this Labour Government as well.

"The moment they decided they would prop up a Tory government is the moment that they surrendered the right to speak for Scotland."