The hard left Socialist Workers Party has appealed to disaffected Labour members to join their tiny outfit. Labour has already lost almost 60,000 members since Starmer took over from Corbyn and while it's not clear how the current infighting has affected membership, we know that a number of prominent figures have thrown in the towel - including one former MP and a number of councillors. One of the recent walkouts cost the party its majority on Kirklees Council.
On Monday the SWP printed an open letter to Labour members in its rag the Socialist Worker. The letter was predictably critical of Keir Starmer and what communists refer to as 'the right wing' of the party. Signed by the 'Central Committee', the letter accuses Starmer of going back on his pledge to 'preserve Corbyn's legacy' by being 'intent on driving [Corbyn] out'. It goes on to suggest that the treatment of Corbyn has nothing to do with anti-Semitism, but everything to do with a powerful clique of MPs who support the state of Israel and want to exact revenge on behalf of Blair and New Labour. The word 'Zionist' is not used, but it's clear what is meant.
The stakes are high if Corbyn is not fully reinstated and this results in a significant split in the Labour Party. The SWP surmises that this would leave 'hundreds of thousands' politically homeless and is keen to invite those Corbynites into its depleted ranks - bringing some desperately needed credibility and, crucially, generating a lot of income. However, the SWP is up against a seriously viable alternative in the event of a Labour split. It's more likely that a new entity would arise from the split, something that former Labour MP Chris Williamson has been pushing for (see video below).
Either way, whichever party the horde of Corbynites choose to end up is doomed to failure. The likelihood that Burgon, Lavery and McDonnell would share a platform with the sort of loony lefties deemed too extreme even for Labour will give their new venture as much credibility and electability as the current joke outfit that is the Socialist Workers Party.
