Nicola Sturgeon has said she would help Jeremy Corbyn become Prime Minister by ordering SNP MPs to support him on an “issue-by-issue” basis if the General Election results in a hung parliament.

The First Minister said she would expect “all sorts of deals” between her party and Labour if the Tories lose their majority, amid concerns that Mr Corbyn will cave in to her demand for a second independence referendum.

Although she ruled out a formal coalition, she said she would want the Nationalists to be part of a “progressive alternative to a Conservative government” that put Mr Corbyn in 10 Downing Street.

Kezia Dugdale, the Scottish Labour leader, insisted her party would refuse to strike any form of deal with the SNP but admitted a minority Corbyn government would end up relying on Nationalist votes to pass legislation and its Budgets.

The Conservatives said Ms Sturgeon’s intervention underlined “the very real risk” that Mr Corbyn will be Prime Minister on Friday next week propped up by “coalition of chaos”, while in charge of both Brexit and the country’s economic security.