THE Tories stepped up efforts to reverse the Lib Dem poll bounce today with a warning that a hung parliament could "paralyse" Britain.
A mock political broadcast purportedly from "The Hung Parliament Party" promises to bring the economy to its knees and send interest rates soaring.
Unveiling the film at a press conference in Westminster this afternoon, shadow chancellor George Osborne said: "Only a Conservative majority guarantees change for the better.
"Only a Conservative majority can secure the recovery."
The broadcast shows a man who looks similar to Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg wearing a yellow rosette.
Standing against the backdrop of the House of Commons, he pledges that the Hung Parliament Party will deliver "behind closed doors politics", with "indecision and weak government".
There would also be a "dip in confidence", a run on the pound and "disastrous" hikes in interest rates that would "paralyse" UK plc.
He insists it is easy to get the Hung Parliament Party into power: "A vote for any party other than the Conservatives should do the job."
The video is more evidence that the Tories have decided on an aggressive response to the Lib Dem surge, with polls suggesting the main parties are deadlocked.
Alongside the video, new campaign literature depicts Gordon Brown waving outside 10 Downing Street with the message: "This is what a hung parliament looks like."
Mr Osborne pointed to sharp falls in stock markets after the last hung parliament in 1974 as proof of the threat, and insisted that surveys of business figures had revealed they were concerned.
He said it was clear that the Hung Parliament Party had the "potential to change the way Britain is governed".
