1948 Glasgow Camlachie by-election

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The 1948 Glasgow Camlachie by-election happened on 28 January 1948 after the death of Campbell Stephen, the sitting MP. Stephen had been elected for the Independent Labour Party (ILP) in 1945, but he left the ILP and later joined the Labour Party, which he had represented in Parliament in earlier years.

By this time the ILP was small and in decline. Its best-known figure, James Maxton, had died, and all three of the ILP MPs had already joined Labour. With Labour planning to fight the seat, many people did not expect the ILP to keep Camlachie and predicted a Labour–Unionist contest.

The ILP chose Annie Maxton, James Maxton’s sister, as their candidate. The Unionists picked Charles McFarlane, a local factory owner. Labour selected John M. Inglis, a train driver and trade unionist. The SNP and Liberal Parties also stood, and Guy Aldred stood for his United Socialist Movement on an abstentionist anti-Parliamentary platform. The SNP also faced internal problems: a candidate named Wilkie ran under the SNP banner without proper approval, and the SNP’s leadership later expelled him. Douglas Young left the SNP and rejoined Labour, while Andrew Dewar Gibb considered returning to the Unionists.

In the election, Charles McFarlane narrowly won for the Unionists. Labour came in a close second, but the result was seen as a warning for the government, suggested by at least one newspaper as showing that a government candidate could not easily win over the city’s poorer areas. The ILP vote collapsed, showing it was no longer a major political force. The SNP finished fourth, and the Liberals came sixth, beaten even by Aldred’s United Socialist Movement.

McFarlane held the seat for a couple of years, but in the 1950 general election he lost to Labour's William Reid. Annie Maxton remained a prominent ILP figure and eventually became the party’s chair.