2006 Dunfermline and West Fife By-election
George Hargreaves, the leader of the Christian Party, fought the Dunfermline and West Fife By-election on 9/2/2006 following the death of sitting Labour MP Rachel Squire on 6/1/2006.
Gordon Brown, the Prime Minister and leader of the Labour Party, lived in this constituency, and he was the MP of the neighbouring constituency Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath. This did not prevent Labour losing with a massive 16.2% swing to the Lib-Dems. This was the first time Labour had ever lost to the Liberal Democrats, or their predecessors the Liberal Party, in a Scottish Westminster by-election.
During this by-election, the Westminster Parliament was voting on The Incitement to Religious Hatred Bill which would interfere with freedom of speech and the ability to preach the Gospel. There were so many MPs tied up in the by-election that Labour Party managers lost sight of those available to vote, and the Bill was lost by one vote because MPs were tied up in the Dunfermline and West Fife by-election.
The Rev. George Hargreaves obtained 1.2% of the vote and beat the UKIP candidate who received 0.6% of the vote. Christianity Today called this a good result. There was public outrage when Hargreaves and four other candidates were excluded from the platform at a televised election hustings. After the intervention of the Rev. Hargreaves, the audience applauded and carried chairs on to the platform for the five excluded candidates allowing the hustings to continue with all nine candidates on stage.
