THE election race is heating up – and the SNP yesterday drafted in leader Nicola Sturgeon to boost her party’s candidate for the Greenock & Inverclyde seat.

The First Minister was joined by deputy John Swinney at Ferguson’s shipyard in Port Glasgow to support the campaign of Stuart McMillan.

In an exclusive interview with the Tele she was in buoyant mood about her party’s chances of taking the district seat for the first time.

Asked if her party will seize the Greenock & Inverclyde seat on May 5, Ms

Sturgeon told the Tele: “We take nothing for granted, we’re working really hard and we’ve got an outstanding local candidate in Stuart McMillan, so, yeah, we feel optimistic – but it’s up to the people of this constituency as to whether we win it or not.

“I hope they do put their trust in Stuart as their local MSP and in me to be the First Minister after the election.

“I’m optimistic but I’ve fought many, many elections in my political career – I know better than to take anybody for granted.

“There’s not a single vote yet been cast, so we’ll keep working right up until the close of polls on polling day to persuade people that if you want to see the country keep moving forward in the right direction then it’s important to re-elect an SNP government and to re-elect me as First Minister.”

Ms Sturgeon was speaking on a visit to a shipyard she and her party have come to know very well in recent times.

The Scottish Government – along with Inverclyde Council and partner agencies – stepped in to help salvage Ferguson’s from the scrapheap by setting up a taskforce, led by Mr Swinney, when the company plunged into administration in August 2014.

The group’s work paved the way for a takeover by billionaire businessman and Clyde Blowers owner Jim McColl.

The following month, Ms Sturgeon awarded Ferguson Marine a £12.3million ferry contract and in August last year she named the firm as the preferred bidder for a lucrative £97m government contract for two new ferries.

Asked how highly she ranks the success of the Port yard among her successes in government, Ms Sturgeon said: “I think this is one of the achievements we are most proud of.

“This yard is iconic in Scotland, our shipbuilding industry is obviously really important and this yard came very, very close to not being here any more and it’s because we had a government prepared to intervene and not give up on this yard that it is here today and going from strength to strength.”

During yesterday’s visit, Ms Sturgeon met with staff and management and said she could ‘hardly recognise’ the yard, which is undergoing a dramatic £12m transformation.

Greenock & Inverclyde SNP candidate Mr McMillan said: “It’s great to see the First Minister back in Inverclyde again and this highlights the importance of Ferguson Marine to the local area, and the importance of shipbuilding industry in Scotland.”