Nearly 800 years after Magna Carta was sealed on the banks of the Thames, David Davis will use the suburbs of Hull to launch a civil liberties revolution to defend promises made by King John in 1215.

Unfortunately for Mr Davis, much of his soaring rhetoric on the steps of Parliament went over the heads of the voters of Haltemprice & Howden as they discovered that from early next week they will be without an MP.

In a sign of the bizarre things to come, potential candidates for the by-election were melting away last night in an attempt to allow Mr Davis an easy contest. The Liberal Democrats, who would need only a 6 per cent swing, will not put up a candidate. Labour is certain to do the same. Even the UK Independence Party suggested that it was unlikely to stand.

There were rumours last night that an independent candidate with unofficial backing from Labour might stand in order to challenge Mr Davis’s opposition to 42 days. Another challenger might be from “Beauties for Britain” — a small party fronted by Miss Great Britain — which fielded candidates in Crewe & Nantwich and Henley. Kelvin MacKenzie, former editor of The Sun, said that if Labour and the Liberal Democrats did not put up any candidates then he would stand himself.

Although it seems unlikely that Mr Davis would lose the seat, his constituents may be reluctant to participate in a single-issue referendum forced upon them by one man’s personal crusade for their civil liberties.

Mr Davis is a popular figure in the East Yorkshire market town of Howden, which he has represented since he was elected to the constituency of Boothferry in 1987. The seat vanished in 1997, when the town became part of a new constituency stretching from the outskirts of Goole to the middle-class western suburbs of Hull.

By-elections cost the taxpayer up to £80,000. This pays for the hire of the council buildings for the count, polling stations and staff. It excludes the cost of campaigning, which Mr Davis will have to raise himself.

Reactions

“I wish David Davis well in his by-election campaign. I know the Conservatives, including me, will want to go and support him. But my responsibility at all times is [to have] that strong permanent team ready for government”

David Cameron, Tory leader

“Faced with a crucial decision on the safety and protection of the British public, the Conservatives have collapsed into total disarray on what is their first big policy test since they have come under greater scrutiny”

Jacqui Smith, Home Secretary

“David Davis’s behaviour is a pure piece of political theatre, even more bizarre than John Major resigning as leader of the Tory party in order to stand again against his own colleagues. This is childish and immature and it is not worthy of a major political party to engage in such theatre”

David Blunkett, former Home Secretary

“I admire him for it. He has shaken up the whole system and he’s certainly not doing it for his own benefit. Yes, it’s crazy, but it is also brave, and brave and crazy sometimes go together”

Clare Short, former Cabinet minister, now Independent MP

“When David told me about his decision I tried to talk him out of it”

Shami Chakrabarti, director of Liberty

“We all love him. The whole village loves him. But I don’t agree with party policy. I’m Liberal after what happened with Iraq. If he stood as an Independent, I might vote for him, but not as a Conservative”

Brian Blackburn, 83, has lived in the constituency for 25 years

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