Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar has taken a swipe at the Scottish First Minister, saying Labour must create a “credible” alternative to the SNP and the Conservative Party. He said: "We have got to build a credible alternative to the SNP and the Tories.

       “It has to be a positive, unified and authentic message to voters.

       "The SNP and Nicola Sturgeon would love people to think England is Johnson and Priti Patel.

       “England is more Gareth Southgate and Raheem Sterling: diverse, and not scared of confronting the scars in our society.”

       But Ms Sturgeon has proposed an alliance between the SNP and Scottish Greens in hopes of securing a pro-independence majority.

       She opened formal discussions with the Scottish Greens on a cooperation deal in government.

       The coalition would co-write policies on the climate crisis in exchange for the Greens’ support in a future Indyref2 vote.

       The Telegraph’s Scottish editor Alan Cochrane said Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove argued these parties are "anti-jobs" and "anti-Aberdeen".

       He wrote: “Endorsing the possibility of some kind of alliance with the Scottish Greens may well be too much for most Nats.

       “It certainly should be. As Michael Gove, the Cabinet minister for just about everything, claimed on Monday, the Greens were opposed to just about everything that might benefit Scotland.