Monday briefing: What Zarah Sultana's new breakaway party could mean for Labour and the left
In her resignation statement, Sultana accused the government of seeking to make disabled people suffer and called the political system in Westminster 'broken'. She said she was joining forces with other independent MPs and activists to build an alternative to what she described as a political establishment that no longer served ordinary people.
The news will not come as a surprise to many Westminster watchers – Corbyn has been hinting at the formation of a new party since last September, and an appeareance on Peston on Sunday two weeks ago was widely seen as a soft launch for the project. But so far Corbyn has confirmed only that he is in discussions about a new party; some reports suggest Sultana caught parts of the emerging alliance off guard, exposing divisions over strategy and direction – and a struggle for leadership and power.
While we await more key details – including the party's name – it's worth asking whether there is real public appetite for a new leftwing party, what it could look like, and what impact it could have on not just Labour but the entire political landscape. To explore those questions, I spoke with veteran pollster and Deltapoll co-founder Joe Twyman for today's newsletter. That's after the headlines.
Labour | Downing Street is facing another bruising battle after last week's humiliating retreat on welfare reforms as MPs, campaigners and parents voice concern at its overhaul of special needs education for children in England, the Guardian can reveal.
Middle East | Israeli warplanes launched a wave of strikes in Gaza on Sunday, killing at least 38 Palestinians, according to hospital officials, as talks over a ceasefire in the devastated territory reached a critical point.
US news | Residents in central Texas were observing a day of prayer on Sunday for at least 82 people killed and dozens missing in flash flooding. A search, rescue and recovery operation was continuing.
Australia | A jury in Australia has found Erin Patterson, 50, guilty of murdering three relatives and attempting to murder a fourth with a poisoned beef wellington lunch almost two years ago.
UK news | Keir Starmer, King Charles and the home secretary, Yvette Cooper, have marked the 20th anniversary of the 7 July attacks in London in which Islamist suicide bombers killed 52 people and injured more than 770.
Sultana published a statement on Thursday accusing Labour and the Conservatives of offering 'nothing but managed decline and broken promises'. She pointed to Reform – and its leader, Nigel Farage, a 'billionaire-backed grifter' in her words – leading the polls as evidence of the political system's failure. Framing the next general election as a battle between 'socialism or barbarism', a slogan famously used by the Marxist thinker Rosa Luxemburg, she called for urgent political change.
The MP's statement strongly criticised some of Labour's most controversial policies in government, including the two-child benefit cap, winter fuel payment cuts and welfare reform proposals that the government's own impact assessment says would push many disabled people into poverty. She also condemned politicians across the spectrum for smearing 'people of conscience trying to stop a genocide in Gaza as terrorists'.
Sultana ended the statement by urging supporters to 'join us' in building what she presented as a new political alternative. As of this morning, more than 45,000 people had signed up as 'actioners'. Together, these two themes – inequality and poverty, and anger over the war in Gaza – point to the communities this new party is hoping to mobilise and represent. But is there any appetite for this among the British electorate?
What does the polling say?
It's hard to measure hypotheticals in polling, Joe Twyman told me, yet he warned: 'The last 10 to 15 years of British politics have taught us that you cannot rule anything out, and that nothing can be guaranteed.'
On the question of whether there is a desire for a new leftwing party among the electorate, Twyman said: 'There is always a desire for a new party … if there were a general election tomorrow and the following parties were running, the normal parties, and then a new party, left, right, whatever, they will always poll relatively well. And by relatively well, I mean around 10-15%.'
A recent poll by More in Common, shared with the New Statesman last month, backed this up, finding that a new party fronted by Corbyn could pick up 10% of the votes in an election. But Twyman was keen to temper expectations. 'That's because you're asking in an abstract way: how would you hypothetically vote in a hypothetical election for a hypothetical party? But what people are actually answering is how they feel about the existing parties. We project our hopes and expectations on to a new party. People think, 'Oh yeah, I'd vote for that,' not because they like the new party, but because they don't like the established ones. There's nothing bad yet about this new party in the eyes of many people.'
He added that he speaks from experience. Twyman was the official pollster for the ill-fated Change UK party, made up of centrist defectors from Labour and the Conservatives in 2019. Ultimately, not a single candidate won a seat. 'It lasted so short a time I didn't even get the T-shirt,' he joked.
What does this mean for the Greens?
It has been particularly interesting to see how leading figures in the Green party have responded to the announcement of a new political party. Zack Polanski, the insurgent London assembly member running to lead the Greens on a radical, mass-membership 'eco-populism' platform, quickly announced he would work with any party that wanted to stop Reform and challenge Labour. So did Mothin Ali, the most high-profile candidate currently running to become the party's deputy leader.
Could we soon see a political pact between the Green party and this new organisation? James Meadway, an economist, former adviser to John McDonnell and now a Green party member, has been calling for exactly that, and he isn't alone. He claims there are 60 seats up for grabs for an alliance between socialists and environmentalists.
But could this actually work? Twyman told me it is difficult to test the public appetite for formal alliances. 'The average person in the street has not thought about this at all,' he said. 'What you're dealing with here is hypotheticals, but the reality can be very, very different.'
He said the mistake people often make is simply adding up parties. It's the same trick Conservatives use when they add Reform's vote to their own and claim that is what they would get if Reform didn't stand. So for now, there is no reliable way to model how well such an alliance would actually perform.
Will it be a serious threat to Labour?
As for Labour leadership, they have so far brushed off the announcement of this new party, while some Labour backbenchers actively welcomed Sultana's resignation. But could this new party prove to be a headache for Labour down the line?
'Everything's a headache for Labour,' Twyman said. 'If you're Tony Blair and you're 40 points ahead in the polls and you get complaints from your left flank, then you can laugh it off. If, on the other hand, you're Keir Starmer and you have had a really tough first year, you're trying to get things back on track, you recognise the risk that Reform represents on some of your voters … and now you're thinking, well, maybe here's another risk.'
Should Downing Street be worried as things stand right now? No, Twyman said. But he wouldn't dismiss it completely, especially if the new party gains money, momentum, or defections.
He suggests the announcement of the party adds to growing evidence of fragmentation in British politics. 'Reform and this new party didn't create this wave of dissatisfaction, but what they're being very effective at doing is riding it on to the beach.'
'Labour governments are meant to make people feel less scared, not more.' John Harris is typically powerful in today's column asking incredulously: is Labour really about to target the educational rights of special needs children? Charlie Lindlar, acting deputy editor, newsletters
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In case you missed it on Saturday: First Edition's own Archie Bland is excellent in this column on Bob Vylan and the coalescing of a steadfast public opposition to Israel's war on Gaza. 'It isn't just that people are angry that the catastrophe in Gaza isn't being given due attention: it is that their encounters with observable reality are being flatly denied,' he thinks. Charlie
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Tennis | At Wimbledon, Cameron Norrie lost a third-set match point but beat Chile's Nicolás Jarry 6-3, 7-6 (4), 6-7 (7), 6-7 (5), 6-3 to set up a quarter-final against Carlos Alcaraz. Briton Sonay Kartal lost to Russian Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 7-6 (3), 6-4 in a clash marred by technological failure, with Wimbledon organisers apologising after the electronic line-calling system was turned off in error at a crucial moment on Centre Court.
Football | Second-half goals from Géraldine Reuteler and Alayah Pilgrim gave Switzerland a 2-0 win against Iceland in Group A of Euro 2025. Caroline Graham Hansen struck late on as Norway ended 2-1 against Finland for their second win in two games at Euro 2025, with Switzerland's win sealing their qualification.
Formula One | Lando Norris took his maiden win at the British Grand Prix after a dramatic and incident-packed race at Silverstone in treacherous wet and dry conditions.
The Guardian begins the week with 'New battle for No 10 as MPs raise alarm on special needs provision'. The Times likewise has 'PM facing fresh revolt over special needs help'. 'Labour 'willing to explore' wealth tax' says the Telegraph. 'State pension tax would be 'insult to all OAPs'' – that's the Express while the i leads with 'UK was 10 years from turning off the taps: Labour vows to avert new water crisis'. The Financial Times tells us that 'China reroutes exports via south-east Asia in bid to skirt Trump's tariff wall'. The Metro reports on a call by the Met commissioner, Mark Rowley, for ''12 mega forces' in policing shake-up'. Biggest story in the Daily Mail is 'Top police chiefs: Smell of cannabis is a 'sign of crime''. ''Fined'... for keeping teeth healthy' – it's a 'perverse' case that stains NHS dentistry, says the Mirror.
A rogue fertility clinic, stolen eggs, and an unlikely friendship
Jenny Kleeman reports on the IVF clinic in the US that stole women's eggs to get other women pregnant.
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A bit of good news to remind you that the world's not all bad
Two decades after the 7/7 London bombings, families of victims have channelled grief into powerful memorials that continue to change lives. The Miriam Hyman Children's Eye Care Centre in India now treats thousands of children each month, while initiatives like Fiona Stevenson's swimming project in Belize and Michael Matsushita's orphanage fund in Cambodia and Vietnam have safeguarded and uplifted countless young lives.
Closer to home, bursaries and hospital donations honour victims like Helen Jones, Benedetta Ciaccia, and Philip Russell. Alongside these legacies, families have also campaigned for reconciliation and social cohesion.
From clinics to classrooms, each initiative reflects the values of those lost and the enduring power of compassion.
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