Last day for by-election campaign

Voters will go to the polls in Glenrothes on Thursday

Candidates in the Glenrothes by-election have been making the final push before voting takes place in the Fife constituency on Thursday.

Former deputy prime minister John Prescott was out, while Scottish First Minister Alex Salmond brought a flavour of the US elections to the campaign.

The Conservatives and Liberal Democrats also hit the streets in the run up to the polls opening.

The by-election follows the death of Labour MP John MacDougall.

He had a majority of 10,664 at the 2005 election.

Mr Prescott joined protesters outside Fife Council headquarters in Glenrothes to campaign against rising home care charges, joking: "I'm just checking nobody's got any eggs."

After the reference to his infamous clash with a protester on the 2001 general election campaign trail in Wales, Mr Prescott praised Gordon Brown's handling of the economic crisis, but said Labour still had to "get out and convince people" in the constituency.

GLENROTHES CANDIDATES Morag Balfour, Scottish Socialists Maurice Golden, Conservative Peter Grant, SNP Lindsay Roy, Labour Kris Seunarine, UKIP Harry Wills, Liberal Democrats Louise McLeary, Solidarity Jim Parker, Scottish Senior Citizens Unity Party Glenrothes: Candidate profiles

He added: "Salmond can't do anything about the global problems we've got at the moment - all his international arguments have gone.

"Labour will put its case and has proved itself in 10 years and I hope that the good people of Glenrothes will back Lindsay for public services and education."

But 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 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."

'Tax cut'

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