2008 Haltemprice and Howden by-election 2008 Haltemprice and Howden by-election The 2008 Haltemprice and Howden by-election was a by-election held in the United Kingdom on 10 July 2008 to elect a new Member of Parliament (MP) for constituency of Haltemprice and Howden. The by-election was triggered by the surprise and controversial resignation from the House of Commons of the sitting MP David Davis on 12 June 2008. Davis stated intention was to spark a wider public debate on the perceived erosion of civil liberties in the UK by recontesting his seat on this single issue platform, launched as the David Davis for Freedom campaign. The
2008 Haltemprice and Howden by-election and criticism from politicians, the public and the media, with "The Sun" newspaper initially considering fielding a candidate to oppose Davis in support of anti-terrorism legislation. The Labour party's non-participation stance attracted specific criticism as appearing to be afraid to debate, following recent poor election results and a record low opinion poll result; while Davis attracted criticism as being vain, wasting public money, and for contesting the issue in his safe seat. Davis, the then Shadow Home Secretary, announced his intention to resign on 12 June 2008, a day after a House of Commons vote passed the Counter-Terrorism Bill, which