By-Election Success

Spectacular swings to the Lib Dems were a feature of both Parliamentary By-Elections this week.

Lib Dem Councillor Parmjit Singh Gill took Leicester South from Labour with an amazing 21% swing, with the Tories still in a weak third place with a reduced share of the vote. He becomes the Lib Dem's first ethnic minority MP.

An even larger swing to the Lib Dems from Labour was seen in Birmingham Hodge Hill where Nicola Davies achieved a 27% swing, pushing the Tories into a weak third place with a reduced share of the vote, despite narrowly failing to capture the seat.

A feature of both campaigns was the large vote for the anti-Labour, anti-War "Respect" party, which ironically in Hodge Hill probably helped Labour hold the seat. The Lib Dem candidate was also the target for some ugly "negative campaigning", usually the resort of the desperate.