Shadow Chancellor Ed Balls yesterday urged traditional Labour voters not to use next week’s referendum as a “protest” against the Tory-led government at Westminster.
On a visit to Aberdeen, the senior opposition MP said he understood the “frustration” many Scots felt about coalition policies, but insisted a No vote was best for the “long term future”.
Mr Balls also argued that an independent Scottish government would have to cut the health budget to balance the books – contrary to the SNP argument that only a Yes vote can safeguard the NHS.
He said: “I understand the depth of frustration that people have in Scotland, about us having a Tory government in Westminster and I know there are very many Labour voters who are thinking ‘I don’t like David Cameron and George Osborne making decisions about our lives’.
“But this is not a protest vote, this is about the long term future of Scotland, and the long term future is best secured by us having devolution and keeping the union together.
“Look at the turmoil you have seen in the financial markets today, look at the value you have seen wiped off Scottish companies, that’s what happens when you have this kind of instability.
“The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) says Scotland would need to have spending cuts or tax rises of £6billion if it went for independence.
“The NHS will have to be cut by Alex Salmond as part of a package of spending cuts if he gets his way. That’s why, to save the NHS, we want people to vote No.”
During his brief campaign trip to the north-east, Mr Balls spoke with voters in the Bon Accord shopping centre.
Linda Juroszek, 60, a former non-executive board member of NHS Grampian, said she discussed her “disappointment” at Yes campaign claims a No vote would affect the NHS budget north of the border.
She said: “My concern is that if we have less funding, there will be less money for the NHS, which is already working to capacity and not meeting the demands that we have due to the age of our population. We need more money in the future, and I don’t know where it is going to come from.”
Mr Balls also met bosses at oil and gas giant Shell in Aberdeen, where he was given a presentation about multimillion-pound plans for a carbon capture and storage facility at Peterhead.
He added: “Of course, that investment, those jobs would be at risk if people voted for independence.”