\n<\/p>\n
When the idea of a new leftwing party spearheaded by Jeremy Corbyn and Zarah Sultana was first mooted in the summer, it was so popular that hundreds of thousands of people expressed an interest in joining.<\/p>\n
Although it was quickly beset by arguments \u2013 its co-founders rowed bitterly over its initial leadership and funding model \u2013 many hoped this weekend\u2019s inaugural conference would signal a fresh start.<\/p>\n
A sizeable chunk of the 2,500 delegates are former Labour members, disappointed by the policies of the current government and looking for a political home as they worry about the rise of Reform UK.<\/p>\n
As plans for the party\u2019s first official gathering were finalised, Sultana and Corbyn looked to have buried the hatchet. Appearing at a leftwing festival in Manchester last month, Sultana jokingly compared the duo to the Gallagher brothers, saying: \u201cI\u2019m here to tell you the show is back on the road.\u201d<\/p>\n
Yet when the doors to the conference centre in Liverpool opened on Saturday morning, Sultana was curiously absent. As Corbyn delivered his opening address, she was sipping hot chocolate in a cafe about a mile from the venue.<\/p>\n
It became evident there was no unified position on how the party should be led. Corbyn told journalists he favoured a traditional leadership model, with one person elected to take charge, and suggested he\u2019d be likely to run if members voted for this option.<\/p>\n
<\/span>Zarah Sultana wants Your Party to have a collective leadership structure, whereas Jeremy Corbyn favours a traditional model.<\/span> Photograph: Stefan Rousseau\/PA<\/p>\n But in an interview with the Guardian, Sultana said she was supporting a collective leadership structure, with key decisions being taken by lay members \u2013 those not already serving as MPs or councillors. She added that she did not think parties should be run by \u201csole personalities\u201d. She did, however, indicate she would be willing to stand against Corbyn if there was a contest for a single leader.<\/p>\n Although Sultana insisted she and the former Labour leader were getting on \u201creally well\u201d \u2013 they had, she said, spoken about how they wanted the conference to be \u201ca positive, joyful experience where members feel empowered\u201d \u2013 she was scathing about some of his allies and Your Party officials whom she believes are briefing against her. She refused to provide names, but it is understood that relations between her supporters and Corbyn\u2019s former chief of staff Karie Murphy are particularly fraught.<\/p>\n The Coventry South MP \u2013 who defected from Labour in July \u2013 added that there was still a \u201ctoxic culture\u201d among others in Your Party, which had led to \u201cbullying, intimidation and smears\u201d and \u201cacts of deliberate sabotage\u201d.<\/p>\n Tensions came to a head around lunchtime when it emerged Sultana would boycott the first day of the conference, in solidarity with would-be delegates who had been turned away from the event due to affiliations with other leftwing groups \u2013 particularly the Socialist Workers party. Her spokesperson described this as a \u201cwitch-hunt\u201d, adding: \u201cWe must build a party that welcomes all socialists.\u201d<\/p>\n Allies of Corbyn \u2013 who wrongly asserted on Saturday morning that the Socialist Workers party was registered with the Electoral Commission \u2013 were furious, accusing Sultana of attempting to stage a \u201csideshow\u201d. They believe allowing multiparty membership would cause disruption and increase the factionalism which already appears to have crippled the fledgling movement.<\/p>\n <\/span>Supporters during the Your Party founding conference.<\/span> Photograph: Stefan Rousseau\/PA<\/p>\n On the status of the Socialist Workers party, one Corbyn ally said: \u201cIt might not be registered with the Electoral Commission but it is still a party. The clue is in the name.\u201d<\/p>\n Many delegates were frustrated that Saturday\u2019s proceedings descended into factionalism when they would have preferred to discuss key issues such as the cost of living crisis and immigration, as well as strategising for next year\u2019s local elections.<\/p>\n Your Party is yet to decide if it will field its own candidates or back socialist independents and some members feel the party will have failed if it is not on the ballot paper as an alternative to Labour.<\/p>\n It remains to be seen if proceedings can be salvaged on Sunday, when the results of key votes \u2013 such as the party\u2019s permanent name and leadership structure \u2013 will be announced. Sultana plans to attend and give a speech, which has comforted those who still hope for unity.<\/p>\n Yet most delegates remained despondent as they shuffled out of the conference hall into a rainy Liverpool night on Saturday. Perhaps the mood of the day was summed up by one, who said: \u201cMy large glass of wine is turning into a bottle.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" When the idea of a new leftwing party spearheaded by Jeremy Corbyn and Zarah Sultana was first mooted in the summer, it was so popular that hundreds of thousands of people expressed an interest in joining. Although it was quickly beset by arguments \u2013 its co-founders rowed bitterly over its initial leadership and funding model<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":35691,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[48],"tags":[20071,6582,2644,3000,2643,10673,871,3145,1587],"class_list":{"0":"post-35690","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-politics","8":"tag-achieving","9":"tag-conference","10":"tag-corbyn","11":"tag-fresh","12":"tag-jeremy","13":"tag-partys","14":"tag-shows","15":"tag-sign","16":"tag-start"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35690","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=35690"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35690\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/35691"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=35690"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=35690"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=35690"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}