Election 2015: It's not about independence or another referendum — but having our voices heard

As part of i's election special, Nicola Sturgeon gives you her final pitch

Nicola Sturgeon with voters today in Inverness (Reuters)

This election is like no other in modern times. It has seen the power of the Westminster establishment challenged as never before, with the strength of the establishment parties ebbing away – and that is a very healthy thing for democracy.

The SNP’s prospectus this Thursday is clear: we pledge to be a strong voice for Scotland at Westminster while offering an end to austerity for the whole of the UK.

As I have made very clear, this election is not about independence or another referendum, no matter how many SNP MPs may be elected tomorrow. But electing a powerful bloc of SNP MPs will give us the chance to stop austerity in its tracks, and instead invest in vital public services like the NHS while also bringing down the deficit in a sensible, controlled way. That will be good for Scotland – but also for people across the rest of the UK who are equally turned off by the identikit policy agendas of the establishment parties.

I have lost count of the number of messages of encouragement I and the SNP have received from people in England, many of whom have indicated they would like to have the chance to vote for us. And that gives the lie to the notion put about by both the Tories and Ukip – who have been trying to outdo each other in their increasingly hysterical attacks on the SNP – that people in England are, as one, opposed to the kind of progressive change we can bring.

No matter the arithmetic the UK wakes up to on Friday morning, we will never back a Tory government. Indeed, if there is an anti-Tory majority, we will call on Labour – even if they are not the largest party – to vote with us to keep out the Conservatives. Westminster is supposed to be the parliament and the government for the whole of the UK. However, it often hasn’t felt that way for Scotland as we have had to put up with Tory governments that we have rejected.

So surely the test of legitimacy applied to whatever Westminster government is formed after this election cannot simply be that it is the largest party in England. The test that must be applied is whether a government can build a majority and win support that reflects the whole of the UK. MPs from England will always be the largest part of any Westminster majority, but to ignore Scottish voices would be wrong. Last year, people in Scotland were told their voices – and presumably their votes – really mattered. They were implored not to leave the UK, but instead to lead it. Now, when it appears that many people across Scotland are prepared to follow that advice and vote to make their voice heard, the legitimacy of their votes is openly challenged. For as long as Scotland remains part of the Westminster system, that means our voice – and our votes – must have equal weight. Anything else would be an affront to the democratic principles which the SNP’s critics claim to hold dear.