in the resulting general election. It did well at the local elections of 1977, making 98 net gains and leaving much of Scotland under hung councils. However 1978 saw a Labour revival at the expense of the SNP, at three by-elections (Glasgow Garscadden, Hamilton and Berwick and East Lothian) and the local elections. The general election did not come until 1979, by which time the SNP's support had dwindled. By 1976, the Labour Government had lost the three-seat majority it won at the 1974 general election after a series of by-election defeats, making its survival dependent on SNP support. In a position of the kingmaker, the SNP named home rule for Scotland as its price. Conservative opposition forced progress of the Scottish bill to a crawl, nevertheless, a bill to hold a referendum on establishing a devolved legislative assembly for Scotland was passed in 1978. However, Labour MP George Cunningham inserted an amendment requiring that the proposal be approved by 40% of all registered voters in order to take effect. In practice this doomed the home rule cause as while the proposed Scottish Assembly secured a majority of 51.6% at the referendum, a turnout of 63.7% meant only 32.9% of the electorate approved the bill. As a result, the SNP withdrew its support for the Labour Government. In 1979, the SNP Parliamentary Group voted against the Labour Government in a Vote of No Confidence, causing the dissolution of the government and subsequent election. The then Labour Prime Minister, James Callaghan famously described this decision by the SNP as that of "turkeys voting for Christmas". After the 1979 general election, the SNP had only two seats, representing a net loss of nine seats. Margaret Thatcher became the UK's Prime Minister. UK Government interference The party was accused of paranoia when its leaders claimed it was being spied upon by government agents, but this belief was eventually substantiated by declassified government files. These files proved that the government had in fact spied on the SNP in the 1950s. During the 1970s, the British government used both police and agents placed within trade unions to limit the growth of the SNP the best it could. The Labour Party, which controlled the government at the time and drew a great deal of support from Scotland, saw that the SNP had become much more than a protest vote. It is alleged that government interference is