It was a very messy start to what the left hoped could be the most exciting left-wing movement in modern times.
Jeremy Corbyn finally announced something Westminster had known for a while – that he was launching a new left-wing party with the former Labour MP Zarah Sultana to “take on the rich and powerful” and campaign for the redistribution of wealth.
Politics latest: Labour ‘full of control freaks’, says Corbyn
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Corbyn: ‘We’re open to suggestions for names’
They released a joint statement saying the system had been “rigged” for too long and they would offer an alternative to the “control freaks” within Labour as well as the “dangerously divisive” politics of Reform UK.
It was a much slicker statement than earlier this month, when the young firebrand Zarah Sultana sent a statement only 10 minutes after a Zoom meeting where a loose discussion over the structure of the party had been agreed, stating she would leave Labour to join the new left-wing party.
Corbyn was so unhappy with this he only responded publicly two days later – his team described the timing of the announcement as “unfortunate”. This inevitably led to claims of factualism and the long left tradition of splitism.
But even as the party is formally announced, it still lacks a name.
When I asked Jeremy Corbyn this, he said it was “your party” and as such the grassroots should choose the name.
When I asked if this was a well thought out party, he denied that the communications plan was messy.
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One insider closely connected to the new party’s strategy told me: “The problem is Jeremy listens to everyone and as a result things take longer, there are lots of deliberations – that’s what’s been holding things up.”
But most people are happy with the agreed structure, one senior politician in the party told me: “I’m team both – Jeremy is the older statesman, and Zarah is the future of the party. We are thrilled to get Zarah and her social media followers.”
There’s no doubt that while a lot has been done behind closed doors, the party does seem slightly in chaos.
Still to be worked out is the party branding, the logo, how they will be affiliated with other organisations, they haven’t registered with the Electoral Commission, and one insider working on the communications side said they had wanted a big slick website before launching.
A big unknown is the issue of party donors.
They know they don’t have the backing that other parties have, and they understand they require a lot of money to keep this all ticking along.
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They confirmed they will have an inaugural conference sometime in the autumn and an assembly before that to decide on a few more things – potentially the name.
“Some people want a pre-conference to decide all of these things, but it will be decided by the same group that decided that Jeremy and Zarah should co-lead.”
What they do have going for them is support, even at this early stage.
Jeremy Corbyn told me they have an average of 500 people per minute signing up and only five hours after their official launch, they had 80,000 members.
And when you hear them talk about what the party will do, you can understand why. It’s a list of where they think the government has failed. And that list is long: personal independence payment (PIP), the welfare rebellion, winter fuel chaos and above everything else, Gaza.
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Timing in politics is everything and the Labour left are seizing on a bit of a moment. One year on from Labour’s loveless landslide, the cracks are forming.
One member who was included in the new party’s earliest Zoom calls said they understand where they might have success: “There’s a lot of appetite for an anti-establishment movement that doesn’t bash migrants. The Labour Party has left a massive gap when it abandoned people on immigration and Palestine.”
Another left-wing activist still in the party says it’s only capturing people who got kicked out of the party anyway.
But Labour gave the most withering response of all. A source said: “The electorate has twice given its verdict on a Jeremy Corbyn-led party.”
As we go into recess, it’s clear what all this organisation is about.
Someone on the organisation committee told me they’ve been gearing up for next year’s local elections for a while now.
They’ve been speaking to independent groups and formed a sub-committee of councillors with about 200 people already on board.
A vice chair of this group described themselves to me as “foot soldiers waiting for their orders”. The new party expects Labour to get a hammering or, in their words, they think “Labour is f*****”.
At the last locals, Reform got a boost and this time the left think it’s theirs for the taking.
“You can’t make things happen overnight, look at Reform who came out of UKIP – these things don’t come out of nowhere.”
Keir Starmer started his premiership attempting to crush the left and probably thought coming into power they were safely sealed inside a tomb.
They wanted to prove him wrong, and two of the Labour party’s most popular and rebellious former MPs now plan to take him on.
