Your Party's inaugural conference descended into chaos on Saturday as co-founder Zarah Sultana boycotted the event in Liverpool, refusing to enter the venue hours after fellow co-founder Jeremy Corbyn had pleaded for unity. The MP for Coventry South condemned what she called a "witch hunt" following the expulsion of members and the denial of entry to her supporter, Kingston councillor James Giles.
Sultana's spokeswoman confirmed the boycott outside the conference centre: «This witch hunt is indefensible. We must build a party that welcomes all socialists. She will not be entering the conference hall today.»
The dramatic protest overshadowed the founding conference of the new left-wing movement, where 2,500 selected members from a claimed membership of 50,000 had gathered to vote on fundamental questions about the party's structure and identity.
Corbyn calls for unity amid tensions
Former Labour leader Corbyn had opened the conference with a call for cohesion despite the turbulence. He told members: «As a party, we've got to come together and be united, because division and disunity will not serve the interests of the people that we want to represent.»
Speaking to Sky News on the eve of the conference, Corbyn acknowledged «stresses and strains» in establishing the party but expressed optimism that things were «a lot better in the last few days and weeks». When asked if he and Sultana were friends, he replied only that they were «colleagues in parliament, and we obviously communicate and so on».
Expulsions spark controversy
The conflict centred on Your Party's decision to expel members with alleged ties to the Socialist Workers Party and to deny entry to Giles and councillor Michael Lavalette. The party defended the moves, stating members were expelled for violating «clearly stated membership rules» against dual membership with other national political parties.
Giles told PoliticsJoe the exclusions were «a stitch-up». He said: «An unelected clique of bureaucrats who have organised this event have decided, without any input from the thousands of members who have paid their own way to come up to a conference, to exclude people from this conference hall, is an outrage.»
Sultana told the Press Association: «I'm disappointed to see on the morning of our founding conference, people who have travelled from all over the country, spent a lot of money on their train fare, on hotels, on being able to participate in this conference, being told that they have been expelled.»
She drew parallels to her former party: «That is a culture that is reminiscent of the Labour Party, how there were witch hunts on the eve of conference, how members were treated with contempt.»
Leadership battle looms
The conference faced a crucial vote on whether to adopt a single-leader model, favoured by Corbyn, or a collective executive of lay members, backed by Sultana. However, Sultana told PA she was frustrated that a co-leadership structure was not even offered as an option.
She said: «I supported a co-leadership structure. Unfortunately, a nameless, faceless bureaucrat decided the members weren't allowed to even vote on that option.»
Sultana indicated she might run against Corbyn if members chose the single-leader model, though she pledged to respect the outcome. Corbyn told the Guardian he was «very happy to serve the party in whatever capacity they decide they want me to serve».
Conference agenda proceeds
Despite the internal turmoil, delegates were scheduled to vote on several key issues over the weekend: choosing between proposed names (Your Party, Our Party, Popular Alliance, For The Many), selecting a leadership model, and deciding whether to support socialist independent candidates in the May 2026 local elections.
In his opening address, Corbyn championed «public, democratic ownership» of the water industry, led a chant of «free, free Palestine», and urged members to «campaign forevermore for real socialism and real social justice».
Troubled formation
The party's foundation has been marked by conflict from the outset. In September, Corbyn and other founding MPs criticized an «unauthorised» membership portal launched by Sultana, which collected around £800,000 in donations. Sultana accused colleagues of running a «sexist boys' club», while Corbyn referred the matter to the Information Commissioner's Office.
Two Independent MPs, Adnan Hussain and Iqbal Mohamed, withdrew from Your Party's founding process earlier this month, partly citing internal infighting.
Sultana told the Guardian there was a «toxic culture» within Your Party involving «bullying, intimidation and smears» and «acts of deliberate sabotage». She said: «I can definitely say that toxic culture I've experienced needs to be rooted out. I would say that is directly from the handbook of the Labour right.»
Note: This article was created with Artificial Intelligence (AI).
