Ed Miliband urged voters in Scotland to back Labour in the upcoming general election to help “boot out this Tory government”.
The Labour leader barely mentioned the SNP as he gave a speech in Edinburgh, instead portraying May’s election as a battle between his party and the Conservatives.
With support for the nationalists surging in the wake of the independence referendum, Mr Miliband told voters north of the border that backing any other party but Labour would lead to five more years of Tory rule at Westminster.
Opinion polls predict Labour could lose swathes of seats in its Scottish heartlands to the SNP, leading Mr Miliband to warn: “Every vote cast for another party, including the SNP, makes that prospect of a Tory government more likely.
“It is just a matter of arithmetic.
“Because every one less Labour MP makes it more likely the Tories will be the largest party.”
With the election expected to be the “closest for a generation” the Labour leader said voters in Scotland would play a crucial part in deciding the next government.
Mr Miliband, who was addressing a special one day Scottish Labour conference, declared: “It is the people of Scotland who will help decide this election.
“It is the people of Scotland who can help boot out this Tory government.
“Together, with working people across the UK, we can give David Cameron his marching orders.
“Together, we can send George Osborne off to the City of London. Together, we can give Iain Duncan Smith his P45, and doesn’t he deserve it.
“Together, we can put an end to a Tory government and create something new.”
He continued: “I am asking people here in Scotland to vote Labour to get rid of the Tories and their failed austerity plan.
“But I have a bigger reason. I am asking people here in Scotland to vote Labour for a society and economy founded on different values.”
David Cameron had earlier challenged Mr Miliband to publicly rule out any post-election pact with the SNP, saying a party which wants to “break up Britain” has no place in the UK’s government.
The Labour leader, who is also said to be under pressure from Scottish MPs to rule out such a deal, made no mention of this in his keynote speech.
Instead he focused on the “choice between two UK governments” Britain is facing in two months time
Mr Miliband warned: “The Tories could wreak havoc in Scotland without winning a majority. They could do it by being in government as the largest party.
“It is a nightmare on Downing Street
“A Tory decade for Scotland. Ten years of David Cameron in Downing Street. George Osborne alongside him.
“Ten years of injustice. Ten years of unfairness. Ten years of attacking everything we hold dear in our country
“Let’s sound the alarm across Scotland that this could happen in less than 9 weeks’ time..”
He continued: “If you want to see the end of the Tory government, the only way to make it happen is to vote Labour on May 7.
“The biggest risk of Scotland getting the government it didn’t vote for is to believe you can get a Labour government while voting for somebody else.
“The way to get rid of the Tories and get a Labour government is to vote Labour on May 7. The stakes are so high at this election.”