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‘It’s Time for a New Kind of Political Party. One That Belongs to You.’

Jeremy Corbyn & Zarah Sultana

[Two prominent left-wing British MPs, Jeremy Corbyn and Zarah Sultana, have issued a joint statement to announce they are setting up a new party. The statement, reproduced in full below, is from the new party’s website yourparty.uk.]

The system is rigged.

The system is rigged when 4.5 million children live in poverty in the sixth richest country in the world. The system is rigged when giant corporations make a fortune from rising bills. The system is rigged when this government says there is no money for the poor, but billions for war.

We cannot accept these injustices ― and neither should you.

We will only fix the crises in our society with a mass redistribution of wealth and power. That means taxing the very richest in our society. That means an NHS free of privatisation and bringing energy, water, rail and mail into public ownership. That means investing in a massive council-house building programme. That means standing up to fossil fuel giants putting their profits before our planet.

Meanwhile, millions of people are horrified by the government’s shameful complicity in genocide. We believe in the radical idea that all human life has equal value. That is why we defend the right to protest for Palestine. That is why we demand an end to all arms sales to Israel. And that is why we will carry on campaigning for the only path to peace: a free and independent Palestine.

Our movement is made up of people of all faiths and none. The great dividers want you to think that the problems in our society are caused by migrants or refugees. They’re not. They are caused by an economic system that protects the interests of corporations and billionaires. It is ordinary people who create the wealth – and it is ordinary people who have the power to put it back where it belongs.

It’s time for a new kind of political party. One that is rooted in our communities, trade unions and social movements. One that builds power in all regions and nations. One that belongs to you.

Sign up at www.yourparty.uk to be part of the founding process, leading to an inaugural conference. At this conference, you will decide the party’s direction, the model of leadership and the policies that are needed to transform society. That is how we can build a democratic movement that take on the rich and powerful ― and win.

Real change is coming.

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Over 600,000 Sign Up for New Left-Wing Party in Britain

Ana Vračar

Over 600,000 people have signed up in just a few days to support the formation of a new left-wing party in Britain, following the announcement of its launch by MPs Zarah Sultana and Jeremy Corbyn. Provisionally referred to as “Your Party,” the new political group says it aims to build power from the grassroots up in order to challenge – and defeat – Nigel Farage’s Reform UK as well as Labour under Keir Starmer’s leadership.

While speculation about a new political formation had circulated for months, the initiative geared up after Sultana declared her departure from Labour in the wake of the party’s campaign to designate direct action group Palestine Action as a terrorist organization. Before and after that vote, Labour repeatedly failed to act to halt the genocide in Palestine, despite widespread public outrage over Israel’s crimes.

At the same time, it has promoted austerity policies that either preserve or worsen poverty, all while echoing far-right rhetoric in a failed attempt to win over Reform voters. Corbyn recently reiterated his criticism of the Labour Party for endorsing the racist and xenophobic policies promoted by the right, warning that this will not have the effect Prime Minister Starmer is hoping for. “By scapegoating migrants and minorities for its own domestic failures, Labour has paved the path for Reform UK,” Corbyn wrote. “This Labour government is here to appease Reform. We are here to defeat Reform.”

Similarly, Sultana linked the launch of the new party to Labour’s internal efforts to silence dissent over austerity and solidarity with Palestine. “I could not knock on another door asking people to vote for the Labour Party when it is a genocide party, when it is an austerity party,” she told Novara Media. “To me, the Labour Party is dead: it’s dead morally, it’s dead politically, and it’s dead electorally.”

A broad project to return power to the people

In recent weeks, both Corbyn and Sultana have emphasized that the new party will be structured differently from establishment political parties in Britain, starting with the role of its members. Party democracy and participation, they stress, will be central, with members having a direct say in major decisions, including the party’s final name, leadership model, and electoral strategy – setting it apart from the top-down model of mainstream parties. The new formation also aims to build on existing grassroots and political organizing, encouraging supporters to take an active role in their communities.

Though the initiative has been met with sneers from Reform and skepticism from mainstream Labour, the scale of public support suggests it addresses widespread concerns and has genuine potential to offer a viable alternative to the current model. Labour, in particular, appears to be rattled, Sultana said, arguing that the claim a new left party would only split progressive votes rather than hurting Reform might reveal more about Labour’s concern for its own future than about meaningful change or broader political strategy.

Moreover, Corbyn and Sultana have reiterated that the new party is not just an electoral project, but a broader attempt to return power to the people. “The great dividers want you to think that the problems in our society are caused by migrants or refugees,” the party’s statement reads. “They’re not. They are caused by an economic system that protects the interests of corporations and billionaires. It is ordinary people who create the wealth – and it is ordinary people who have the power to put it back where it belongs.”

[Courtesy: People’s Dispatch, an international media organization with the mission of highlighting voices from people’s movements and organizations across the globe.]