The SNP must lurch to the left to avoid being rebranded the Tartan Tories, the leader of its main Holyrood allies said.
Patrick Harvie, whose Scottish Greens are widely seen as holding the balance of power for the Nationalist minority administration, said Nicola Sturgeon’s party have cosseted the “timid” centre for too long.
Mr Harvie, the party’s co-convener, is to tell Ms Sturgeon today that she can count on Greens support to secure her Holyrood majority – if she pursues a more radical left-wing agenda.
Speaking at the Scottish Greens conference in Perth, he will say: “To the SNP, we will offer our support if they commit to meaningful, progressive change in Scotland, using the limited powers of the parliament.
“If they don’t take that opportunity they risk being remembered as a timid government that caved-in to pressure from big business and sided with the Tories.”
An SNP spokesman said: “In Government, the SNP is happy to work with other progressive parties and will always listen carefully to constructive suggestions.”
Sturgeon ‘must shift left’ to control Holyrood, says Scottish Greens leader
