London--Britain's political leaders were in a final push for votes ahead of Thursday's knife-edge general election, while gearing up for the likelihood of drawn-out negotiations once polls close.
Prime Minister David Cameron, whose Conservatives are deadlocked with the opposition Labour party in opinion polls, launched a tour that will see him campaign until the last minute.
Neither of the two main parties is expected to win a clear majority in the House of Commons, setting the stage for days or weeks of negotiations to team up with smaller parties to take power.
Cameron urged voters to give his party a clear mandate to govern, saying the alternative was years of "backroom deals" if Labour sought to form a government with the support of the pro-independence Scottish National Party (SNP).
"There is still time to determine the outcome of this election," Cameron said.
Labour leader Ed Miliband has ruled out a formal deal with the SNP but it is thought he could be prepared to work with them on a vote-by-vote basis to take power in a minority government.
"Britain faces a clear choice on Thursday: between a Labour government that will put working people first or a Tory government that will only ever work for the privileged few," Miliband said.
The election dominated the front pages of Wednesday's newspapers, with the Financial Times reporting a "scramble to line up durable coalition deals".
The pro-UK Independence Party newspaper the Daily Express put a message from leader Nigel Farage on its front page urging readers to "vote for UKIP wherever you are" to cut immigration and help Britain leave the European Union.
In an editorial backing Cameron, The Times wrote: "The coalition took tough decisions to rekindle prosperity in Britain. The choice tomorrow is between building on that achievement or letting it unravel."
But the Guardian warned of a "hitlist of welfare cuts", reporting that civil servants had considered barring under-25s from housing benefits and abolishing maternity pay as options to keep costs down in the next administration.
AFP
