A new party?

​There’s been a bit of chatter lately about the possibilities for a new left wing party being formed. This flows from a recurrence of the ‘Labour’s high treason’ sensation, borne from the party’s need to sell out in order to win power. It forgets that in recent history we did have a new left wing party which was called Labour, and it failed to win election. This can’t all be blamed on the sabotage tactics of internal dissidents or the anti-Semitism scam. Much of it can be blamed on the inadequacy of the leadership and the attention grabbing character of Boris Johnson. In that last regard voters in ‘red wall’ seats were duped into a sense of optimism which Corbyn didn’t quite convey. One might have thought left leaning voters would have found more repellent Johnson’s repugnant personality but they clearly didn’t. There’s a lesson there for anyone talking up the need for a new left wing party. There is of course a wide range of left wing parties already in existence, including Communists, Socialists and Workers. All on the fringe and irrelevant. Craig Murray, writing on the prospects for a new party has revealed that it would probably be riven by ideological and personality splits before it even got off the ground. The 57 varieties lives on! Putting together some fringes doesn't necessarily add up to something greater than its parts. I think the only party political alternative to Labour must now be the Greens. With approaching two million votes in 2024, over 800 councillors and now four MPs their base is significant, although as their stewardship of Brighton council illustrated their mastery of power can be controversial. Meanwhile Labour ploughs on with austerity. I wonder if someone behind the assault on pensioners has done an actuarial assessment which tells them that half of those who were eligible for the winter fuel payment will be dead by the time of the next election?