Ed Miliband woos first-time buyers with pledge to scrap stamp duty

Ed Miliband will announce plans on Monday to scrap stamp duty for most first-time buyers as the Labour leader tries to build political momentum during the last full week of the election campaign.

Mr Miliband has also tried to close down his weakest flank by insisting there would be "no deal" whatsoever with the Scottish National party in a hung parliament.

While Labour attempts to entice working families by promising to abolish stamp duty on starter homes worth up to £300,000 - a saving for the buyer of up to £5,000 - David Cameron plans to step up campaigning on the economy with the launch of a small business manifesto on Monday.

The prime minister is under pressure to inject passion into the Conservative campaign, with the Tory donor Peter Hall accusing him of "a curious lack of energy and belief".

Some Tory candidates privately complain that Mr Cameron appears to lack desire or seems distracted - a point highlighted by his failure at the weekend to remember which football team he supported.

In an attempt to address those concerns, Mr Cameron told a rally in Somerset on Sunday that he was "excited" by helping people to buy their first home, find a job or create a business.

He attempted to put a positive gloss on his campaign style, adding: "If you want political theatre, go to Hollywood. If you want political excitement, go to Greece."

Lord Heseltine, a former deputy prime minister, also urged the Conservative party to "hold its nerve", telling the Financial Times that voters would stick with the Tories because of their economic record.

But with polls showing no sign yet of a Tory breakthrough, Boris Johnson, the London mayor, was forced to deny as "nonsense" suggestions that Tory MPs could try to install him in place of Mr Cameron soon after the election.

Labour is confident its pledge to help first-time buyers will give it the edge as the campaign enters its final leg. A package of measures costing £225m would be partly paid for by raising stamp duty to at least 3 per cent on non-EU foreign buyers of UK property and by increasing the annual tax on "enveloped dwellings", or homes owned by companies.

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Although the Conservatives' official campaign theme this week is the economy, they believe their most effective message is a warning that Mr Miliband could enter Downing Street on the coat-tails of the SNP.

Mr Miliband insisted on Sunday that there would be "no deal" between Labour and the SNP, including a "supply and confidence" arrangement in which the nationalists would agree to support a Labour Queen's Speech and Budget.

"No coalitions; no tie-ins," Mr Miliband told the BBC's Andrew Marr Show.

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