2008 Haltemprice and Howden by-election would extend the legal detention of terror suspects without charge to a maximum of 42 days. Explaining his actions, Davis stated he intended to spark a wider public debate about the perceived erosion of civil liberties by the then Labour government, which in the following week was launched as the 'David Davis for Freedom campaign'. Culture Secretary Andy Burnham called on Davis to fund the cost of the by-election to the taxpayer, estimated at £80,000, from his own pocket. Davis had held the seat as a Conservative since its creation in 1997, having previously been MP since 1987 for the
2008 Haltemprice and Howden by-election remarked "I may be a loony but I'm not mad enough to want dangerous people to be walking the streets" She has previously stood in Sunderland South in the 2001 and 2005 general elections. The Socialist Equality Party stood Chris Talbot as its candidate on a programme of "genuine" socialism with a particular emphasis on a defence of "democratic rights". He is a lecturer at the University of Huddersfield and contested South Wales Central in the 2007 National Assembly for Wales election. David Icke said he would stand for election under the slogan "Big Brother - the "Big" Picture", but