Lib Dems Storm to Victory in Dunfermline

5.16.52pm UTC (GMT +0000) Fri 10th Feb 2006

The Liberal Democrats have won a sensational victory in the Dunfermline and West Fife by-election. There was a massive swing of 16% from the Labour Party to the Liberal Democrats (and 9% from Conservative to Lib Dem), just nine months after the General Election. The Liberal Democrats turned a Labour majority of 11,562 into a Liberal Democrat majority of 1,800. This victory was the first ever Liberal Democrat gain from the Labour Party in a Scottish by-election.

The full result was:

Willie Rennie (Liberal Democrat) - 12,391

Carrie Ruxton (Conservative) - 2,702

Catherine Stihler (Labour) - 10,591

Ian Borland (UK Independence Party) - 208

Douglas Chapman (Scottish National Party) - 7,261

John McAllion (Scottish Socialist Party) - 537

Dick Rodgers (Common Good) - 103

James Hargreaves (Scottish Christian Party) - 411

Thomas Minogue (Abolish Forth Bridge Tolls Party) - 374

The result has stunned Labour and relegates David Cameron's Conservative Party to fourth in his first major electoral test since becoming Conservative leader. The result was the worst Conservative Parliamentary by-election result for 8 years (while Iain Duncan Smith and Michael Howard led the Party).