Sir Malcolm Rifkind delivered the stark message after allies of the PM made clear he will try to cling on if he is defeated on a confidence motion by rebel Tories determined to head off No Deal Brexit.

John McDonnell has been accused of treating Jeremy Corbyn 'like a puppet' amid claims he failed to warn the Labour leader the party would not block a second Scottish independence referendum.

The SNP leader vowed to pass the law on the issue by the end of 2019 with a view to holding the vote in the second half of next year.

Jeremy Corbyn met Ian Blackford, the Scottish nationalists' Westminster leader, yesterday to agree an election should only be held after Britain has secured another Brexit delay from the EU.

SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon broke ranks with other Remainers by suggesting that a confidence vote to oust Boris Johnson should be held before an extension is secured.

Labour has been stepping up the pressure for opposition parties to back Jeremy Corbyn as head of a 'unity' government to avoid No Deal Brexit.

Piers Morgan challenged Nicola  Sturgeon to 'suck it up' comparing her defeat in the 2014 Scottish independence referendum to Scotland's rugby loss to Japan yesterday.

The State Opening of Parliament saw Boris Johnson and Jeremy Corbyn engage in one of the newer political traditions today - the awkward silent walk to the Lords.

Nicola Sturgeon today issued a fresh rallying cry for Scottish independence as she claimed the SNP is 'winning the case' for a split from the rest of the UK, but Downing Street was quick to rebuff her.

The SNP Westminster leader backs Mr Corbyn's (pictured) claim to be the best person to form a government if a no confidence vote against Boris Johnson succeeds.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson could get a Christmas general election. MPs from across the UK are set to vote on Mr Johnson's call for election.

The Labour leader was effectively given no choice but to cave in and back the PM's bill for a snap poll after it became clear it had Liberal Democrat and SNP support.

The scale of infighting within Labour was underlined last night when more than 100 of Jeremy Corbyn's own MPs ignored his orders to back holding a snap election.

The first minister of Scotland said that her party's message would be 'clear, simple and unambiguous - vote SNP to demand independence and secure Scotland's right to choose'.

Jeremy Corbyn said he last spoke to Ms Sturgeon around 10 days ago, insisting as leaders they had to speak regularly.

Jeremy Corbyn is ready to 'throw the UK under a bus' by forming a coalition with the SNP that would break up Britain, Michael Gove has warned. He said that Labour and the SNP were now 'in bed together'.

Ian Blackford said today the SNP will draw up a 'wish list' of demands ahead of potential post-election cooperation talks with Labour as he hinted scrapping Trident could be one of the party's red lines.

The Labour leader said he wanted to add 'realism' to the nuclear non-proliferation treaty (NNPT), with discussions about 'every country's nuclear weapons'.

Mr Johnson has poured cold water on the idea of sharing a stage with Ms Sturgeon, because he is only prepared 'to contest the debates with whoever theoretically could be Prime Minister.'

Lord Kerslake said the Labour party would 'need to have conversations' with the Liberal Democrats and SNP if the election produces a hung parliament. Labour played down the comments.

Boris Johnson today claimed Jeremy Corbyn is not 'tough enough' to stand up to Nicola Sturgeon and reject her demands for a second Scottish independence referendum.

John Nicholson, the candidate for the marginal seat of Ochil and South Perthshire, tried to rally supporters with a tub-thumping speech ahead of the tightly-fought ballot on December 12.

In a dramatic intervention, Dominic Cummings said the General Election was 'much tighter' than the polls suggested and warned of a 'very real possibility of a hung parliament'.

Nicola Sturgeon's plans for an independent Scotland suffered a hammer blow today after a leading think tank warned splitting from the UK would mean 'more not less austerity' north of the border.

Ms Sturgeon was filmed reacting to the Dunbartonshire East result while doing interviews at the Glasgow count, but has faced fierce criticism over her behaviour.

EUAN McCOLM: English voters wonder why Boris Johnson is bothering with Scotland as its health service is ailing and school attainment has dropped by more than a third due to changes by the SNP.

SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon teed up a pitch battle for the future of the UK claiming Boris Johnson will be 'subverting democracy' by refusing a ballot.

ANDREW PIERCE: Ian Blackford, the SNP leader in Parliament, who comfortably retained his Highlands seat, is non-executive chairman of internet provider Commsworld.

The SNP won 35 seats in 2017 but managed to secure 12 more at the general election last week - a surge which has bolstered Ms Sturgeon's calls for a second breakaway ballot.

The SNP leader made the admission as she addressed the Holyrood parliament and tore into the Prime Minister after his election win. The SNP itself now holds 47 of the 59 seats in Scotland.

SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon said she had won overwhelming support north of the border in the election last week - and the PM had no right to block a new bid to break up the UK.

The Wombles, who found fame on TV in the Seventies, have come out of retirement to back the Spring Clean. They joined nearly 200 MPs including Environment Secretary Theresa Villiers.

The Labour leadership challenger made the comment at a hustings event last week and provoked fury from the party as she labelled its members 'Tories wrapped up in nationalist clothing'.

Former Polish PM Mr Tusk suggested the UK would be focused on 'damage control' in the talks and warned Downing Street against planned divergence from continental rules.

Nicola Sturgeon is alleged to have issued the edict after concerns were raised at staff meetings about Derek Mackay's behaviour.

Kate Forbes only found out that she would announce the Scottish Government's spending pledges for the coming year at around 8am today - just after Derek Mackay resigned in disgrace.

Salmond faces 14 charges of alleged offences against 10 women, all of which he denies.

Alex Salmond is tipped to make a dramatic SNP leadership comeback bid after he was cleared of sex assault charges this week. He could be deputy to MP Joanna Cherry, who led a bid to block Brexit last year.

Former deputy leader of the SNP Jim Sillars, 82, has said that the allegations against against Mr Salmond were the 'dirtiest blow' he has ever seen delivered in his 60 years of political life.

Alex Wilson had his account targeted by his devastated wife Pamela, who said he had left her to be with fellow SNP councillor Mandy Morgan. Pictured: Mr and Mrs Wilson.

Hosts on Airbnb have been flouting the coronavirus lockdown rules by advertising their properties as 'Covid-19 retreats' on the popular rental website.

MSP for Renfrewshire North and West Derek Mackay is entitled to a =n automatic severance payment of £11,945 for losing ministerial office.

Wales manager Ryan Giggs faces a dressing-room rebellion as his side struggles to qualify for Euro 2020. Defeats by Croatia and Hungary have left Wales fourth of five teams in Group E.

Sanches's underwhelming time in the Bundesliga has come to a close after he completed a reported £23m move from German champions Bayern Munich to French side Lille on Friday afternoon.

Michael O'Neill warned the real tests begin now as his Northern Ireland squad prepare to face Germany in Monday's crunch Euro 2020 qualifier.

Wayne Rooney reportedly warned Jamie Vardy about his wife Rebekah's behavior during Euro 2016 - as Coleen Rooney accused the WAG of selling stories on her in a extraordinary Twitter rant.

EXCLUSIVE: The PFA have been accused of ignoring requests for help from lower league players allegedly cheated out of their life savings by former Wales international David Cotterill.

SAMI MOKBEL: It's the size of the challenge that galvanises Raheem Sterling - nothing else. That's why the natural next step in his career is to join one of the Spanish giants - Barcelona or Real Madrid.

Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema has threatened to switch his international allegiance after not being called up to the French squad again.

Arda Turan was once one of Turkey's best players and earned big moves to Atletico Madrid and then Barcelona. But, at 32, his career now lies in ruins following astonishing off-field incidents.