What Ed won't be doing

AND FOR HIS NEXT TRICK....

Word is that Ed Milliband has turned down the starring role in the next Star Wars movie, and is refusing to be considered as Daniel Craig's replacement as Bond.  He's also flatly denied that he will be the new senior presenter on Top Gear or be dong a centrefold for Penthouse.

Possibly.

Any of these things might be true since, in the real world Mr M has said he won't, under any circumstances, be accepting something else that was never offered to him.  Namely, a coalition with the SNP.  Nicola Sturgeon had already clearly stated that under her leadership the party will not take any action which supports another Tory government.  And that any support for a Labour administration would be on a confidence and supply basis, and not formal coalition.  So Ed's stating that something which was never going to happen isn't going to happen isn't all that meaningful.  But it does, once more, pander to the right wing media.  And makes him look even more pathetic in the eyes of Scots (although in the eyes of this Scot he remains by far the less worse choice for PM when matched against Cameron).

Sturgeon is too canny an operator to be drawn into the Westminster government as an active partner - she's seen what that did to the Lib Dems.  And her vision is already looking well beyond what happens in May '15, to the Holyrood elections next year.  She wants an even more convincing majority in the Scottish Parliament than she has at the moment.

Which should also reassure left leaning English voters who fear an SNP volte face which would see them support a Tory government in return for major concessions in devolved powers.  Some point out the previous SNP minority government used Tory support to get it's programme through, but that was in very different circumstances.  Then the aim was to gain power and use it to demonstrate competence.  Which led on to the 2011 majority result.  Any association with the Tories would put this at risk, for the Conservatives remain a toxic name to most Scots.

If the current levels of SNP support hold up until 7 May they could well end up being the third largest party at Westminster and, whether the English establishment and media like it or not, have a major role in determining who forms the next UK government.  That would be the same establishment and media that wanted Scotland to remain in the union, yet now don't want Scotland to be able to choose their own representatives, or have some say in the running of that UK state we are still a part of (for now).

You can't have it both ways guys....