THE Liberal Democrats followed Labour and the Conservatives with a manifesto launch yesterday, promising to hold Britain back from the extremes threatened by the SNP or Ukip.

Nick Clegg said that a parliament with the Liberal Democrats holding the balance of power would not be pushed to the political extremes as one where the SNP or Ukip held sway.

The manifesto includes a pledge to deliver the Transport for the North strategy to speed up inter-city rail connections.

It includes five pledges on fair taxes, the environment, £8billion for the NHS and mental health care, a balanced budget, and education.

Launching the document, Mr Clegg said: “These are the things we will fight tooth and nail for in the next parliament.

“It is not a shopping list of pie-in-the-sky ideas, but proposals that build on our record of action in government.”

For education, the manifesto sets out a £55million budget hike for two to 19 years, maintaining funding in real terms until 2017/18.