Overview

• Grace Lewis resigned her Labour membership to serve as an independent councillor in Coventry while helping build the new left-wing party.
• The party, launched by Jeremy Corbyn and Zarah Sultana last month, positions itself left of Labour on tax, welfare and the Israel-Palestine conflict.
• Its mailing list surpassed 600,000 registrations within its first week and recent polling suggests 10–18% voter support.
• Organisers have announced a hybrid founding conference before the end of the year to decide the party’s name, leadership and policy platform.
• Labour’s leadership has downplayed the new movement’s threat by citing Corbyn’s past defeats, but the defection raises concerns about splitting the left-wing vote.