Glenrothes by-election: Fifers go to the poll today in a by-election which will send out a message to the whole UK about the �Brown bounce� or the end of Alex Salmond�s honeymoon.

Fifers go to the poll today in a by-election which will send out a message to the whole UK about the "Brown bounce" or the end of Alex Salmond's honeymoon.

The buzz among Labour MPs at Westminster last night was that the party had lost the seat, although there was no sign of such an admission on the ground, where Labour have argued over the last week that they are continuing to narrow the gap.

But the SNP continue to believe that after a brief rally for Labour around 10 days ago the trend has been to them, with events on the ground since last weekend being decisive. In partic-ular, the SNP believe Labour has grossly overplayed the issue of increased care charges, which exploded at an eve of poll hustings where many present felt Labour had abused a mentally handicapped woman in a leaflet and had overstated the arguments.

Labour is convinced that the care charges issue is a vote winner, citing a huge rise in hourly rates and the introduction of a £1 a week charge for home alarms. In the final hours of the campaign they presented it as a "referendum issue" and invited voters to make it the key issue.

The SNP lead the administration on Fife Council and council leader Peter Grant, the SNP candidate, has been happy to argue the merits of their policies, which they say has seen far more people face reduced charges than increases.

Mr Salmond said it was "clear" the SNP could win the by-election. "Just as Americans voted for hope over fear, people in Glenrothes can choose between the positive record of the SNP and the negativity and scaremongering of Labour," he said.

"By far the most powerful election leaflets in this campaign have been the massive gas and electricity bills thudding though letterboxes and reminding people that Labour have done nothing to help."

Scottish Conservative Leader Annabel Goldie, campaigning with candidate Maurice Golden, said Britain was "crying out for change", declaring: "There is only one government-in-waiting, only one party which can form the next UK government - the Conservatives.

"Tomorrow, the voters of Glenrothes have the opportunity to start the movement for change in the UK. Gordon Brown's greatest fear is the resurgence of the Conservative Party the length and breadth of Britain."

Liberal Democrat candidate Harry Wills was joined by Willie Rennie, who won the Dunfermline and West Fife by-election for his party in 2006.

Mr Wills said voters' main concerns throughout the campaign had been "money in their pockets" in the face of rising living costs.

"That's what we're advocating," he said, "the 2p tax cut will put more than £300 in each working person's pocket."

He went on to say that the LibDems had been attracting SNP voters who were disenchanted with the SNP at Holyrood and Labour voters who were disenchanted with Labour overall.

He added: "We found our vote hardening in the face of that."

The candidates Conservative - Maurice Golden:
A 28-year-old who lives in Newport-on-Tay, Fife, and works as a campaigns manager for Keep Scotland Beautiful. Became heavily involved with Conservative politics as a student at Dundee University.

Labour - Lindsay Roy:
Headteacher at Kirkcaldy High, Gordon Brown's old school, the 59-year-old is a past president of the Headteachers' Association of Scotland and has been a church elder for more than 35 years.

Liberal Democrat - Harry Wills:
A 61-year-old who has served as the chief executive of several companies and works as a management consultant, Mr Wills is also a church elder and helped raise funds for the restoration of the ship Discovery.

Senior Citizens Unity Party - Jim Parker:
Spent 50 years working in the mining industry in the UK and overseas, the 69-year-old from Cupar heads a consortium of mineworkers and businessmen which wants to see the reopening of several collieries in Fife and Lothians.

SNP - Peter Grant:
The 48-year-old former teacher has lived in Fife for 25 years and currently leads the local council to which he was first elected in 1992. Married to local GP and fellow SNP councillor Fiona Grant.

Solidarity - Louise McLeary:
The 30-year-old lives in Kirkcaldy and works as a volunteer for an Edinburgh-based drugs agency. Visually impaired, she is on the management committee for the Fife Independent Disability Network.

SSP - Morag Balfour:
A 34-year-old practising Quaker from Glenrothes, she has actively opposed nuclear weapons in Scotland, campaigns for free school meals and volunteers in a befriending scheme support for young offenders.

UKIP - Kris Seunarine:
chairman of the Fife Branch of the UK Independence Party, the Essex-born 40-year-old works in bio-photonics at Dundee University. An active Mormon, he lives in East Wemyss.

Result 2005
Labour: John MacDougall, 19,395; SNP: John Beare, 8731; LibDem: Elizabeth Riches, 4728; Conservative: Belinda Don, 2651; Scottish Pensioners' Party: George Rodger, 716; Scottish Socialist: Morag Balfour, 705; UK Independence: Paul Smith, 440.

Majority: 10,664.

Turnout: 37,366.