Theresa May painted a picture of Jeremy Corbyn in Number 10 with Nicola Sturgeon as his puppet master yesterday, as she sought to refocus the election campaign on Brexit.
The prime minister reminded supporters her party only had to lose six seats on June 8 for its Commons majority to disappear.
Her comments came after a series of polls suggested the Conservatives’ lead over Labour has narrowed following a controversial manifesto launch and subsequent U-turn on social care.
Mrs May said: “That could mean in just 10 days’ time, a government in chaos, Jeremy Corbyn in Number 10, John McDonnell in the Treasury, Diane Abbott in the Home Office and Nicola Surgeon and the Lib Dems pulling the strings.
“The Europeans know that if they have a weak government in a hung parliament that government won’t be able to stand up for Britain.”
Returning to the campaign trail in south-west London after the Manchester bombing and Nato and G7 summits, Mrs May was also asked about Ms Sturgeon’s claim over the weekend that she will be forced to rethink her position on a second independence referendum if the SNP wins the election in Scotland.
The SNP leader said ruling it out until Brexit had played out would “quickly become unsustainable” in such circumstances.
She also confirmed the SNP would look to be part of a “progressive alliance” that supported a Labour government, but refused to back Mr Corbyn over Mrs May saying she did not think he was “credible as an alternative prime minister”.
Responding, Mrs May told the Press and Journal: “This is a general election for who is going to be in government for the United Kingdom.
“I have been clear about talking about a second independence referendum in Scotland. Now is not the time.
“What we need to be doing now as we face this historical moment, is we need to get the Brexit negotiations right.
“What we need to do is to be working together and not pulling apart.”
Mocking the first minister, she added: “I believe Nicola Sturgeon said that she didn’t think Jeremy Corbyn was capable of being prime minister but at the same time also said she would prop him up and put him into government.”
Asked yesterday whether another referendum would be a condition of any arrangement, Ms Sturgeon said: “If there’s any chance of a progressive alliance that locks the Tories out I’d want to get as much of the SNP manifesto implemented as possible.”
A spokesman for Mr Corbyn said he and Scottish Labour had repeatedly said another vote was “both unwanted and unnecessary”.