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Beth Winter and Mark Serwotka back new left wing party fronted by Jeremy Corbyn and Zarah Sultana

By Mark Mansfield
Beth Winter (L) and Mark Serworka. Photo Yui Mok PA Wire

Martin Shipton

A former Welsh Labour MP and an ex-general secretary of one of Britain’s biggest unions have backed the as yet unnamed party founded by Jeremy Corbyn and Zarah Sultana.

Until last year’s general election, Beth Winter was the Labour MP for Cynon Valley, while Mark Serworka, originally from Aberdare, was general secretary of the PCS union from 200 until 2024.

The pair have signalled that the new party will operate in Wales and will presumably field candidates at next year’s Senedd election.

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Joint statement

In a joint statement of their own published on social media, Ms Winter and Mr Serwotka say: “We warmly welcome this joint statement issued by Jeremy Corbyn and Zarah Sultana, committing to leading together the building of a desperately needed new party.

“It will be a party that espouses the principles of socialism, campaigning for a more equal society, for redistribution of wealth and power, protecting our public services, strengthening workers’ rights and free trade unions, preventing climate collapse, standing for peace in the world, and for defending our democratic rights.

“We fully support these objectives and we are actively considering how such a party can adequately represent all the nations and regions of the UK, in particular Wales, ensuring we rightly have the kind of autonomy and self-determination that reflects our news and demands.

“Here in Wales, across the UK, people are struggling with increasing inequality, economic injustice, democratic decay and climate collapse.People are tired of being let down, of being promised so much and being given so little, seeing the wealthy prosper while cuts hit their pockets. People are searching for something new, for a sense of belonging and purpose that will improve their lives.

“This is a once in a generation moment that confirms what so many of us have felt for a long time: people are crying out for a real alternative. We need a new kind of politics. To build a force that belongs to the people, and that is shaped by the grassroots movements that are already driving change from the ground up. One that is rooted in care, freedom, tolerance, collaboration, justice and the struggles of ordinary people. Politics that puts people, planet and peace before profit or political positioning.

“For us here in Wales this means ensuring that any such new party will be organised in a way that it enables us, the people of Wales, to determine our priorities and policies to meet our needs and forge our future.

“Such a party that is of the people and for the people of Wales, alongside all the nations and regions of the UK, built on solid socialist principles and democratic organisation.”

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17 comments

TheWoodForTheTrees

At last.

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Y Cymro

As a Welsh Nationalist although I would never vote for Jeremy Corbin's new political party would like to see him dismantle Labour brick by brick down to its bare bone foundation. Labour is a party infected that needs lancing. Welsh Labour are responsible for all the social ills in Wales over the past 26 years. This made worse by lack of Senedd powers. This done deliberately to frustrate and stagnate. At present we have Anglocentric UK Labour and far-right Conservative MPs at Westminster , whose main purpose is power supremacy over Wales , Scotland and Northern Ireland, their bank balance, plus maintaining the West (Wales) and the rest divide once in power. Nothing really changes for Wales. A neverending circle of failed manifesto promises and pledges. British Unionists have weaponized Welsh poverty to a fine art. They know it's effective. An apathetic country is good for business. A people with limited aspirations. Lacking in confidence. Division and infighting preferred. Remember, a prosperous nation tends to be an independent one. A poor divided often dependant. Always keep that in mind. Unionists don't see Wales as a sovereign country but an English appendage to be exploited. They deliberately maintain the Welsh Not. Neglect our infrastructure, and pick Labour loyalist career politicians happy to stab Wales in the back. Their reward? A cabinet position and often a peerage thereafter, the carrot and stick. Just look at the current crop that allegedly represents us at Westminster. The majority voted in favour of Wales not having HS2 or Oxford to Cambridge consequential? Who needs enemies when you've got Wales Labour MPs. My first and foremost priority is seeing a majority Plaid Cymru Welsh Government elected next year. To open voters eyes to Reform UK, how their bull in a china shop ideology of Farage first and Make England Great Again Tory Trumpian policies are a threat not only to our Senedd Cymru but Wales. So I want to see another left-wing party enter the political arena , because at present there's a glut of far-right parties ruling the roost with UK Labour, Conservatives and Reform UK stifling devolution and coagulating democracy.

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Shân Morgain

While I grievingly agree with much of what you say about Labour, I think the new Left party is a positive force. It's not about attacking Labour and knowing Corbyn it won't. If Labour did what Labour was established to do the new party would be no threat. It wouldn;t exist. Because the new party is aiming to do precisely what the original Labour did. It was still doing it under Blair though largely due to Gordon Brown. Under Starmer nuff said. But let's celebrate the joy of a proper Leftist party focused on equality and redistribution.

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David Richards

Sorry but what did that "original labour party" you speak of do for Wales exactly? Shameful catastrophes like Aberfan and Tryweryn occured in Wales under the watch of that original labour party. Alas there's also not been much "equality and distribution" in Wales despite Labour's dominance of Welsh politics for over a century, with poverty rates in Wales being consistently among the worst in the UK for decades.

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Llyn

"Let’s celebrate the joy of a proper Leftist party focused on equality" that will destroy Plaid's chances of winning the Senedd elections and hand the next UK General Election to the far-right Reform UK.

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The Great Thing

I don’t think that devolution should exclusively be the property of the left. I think that the right-wing case for devolution needs to be made. There is a case to be made that devolution restores Britain to something more like how it was before 1066.

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Rob

I agree. Not everyone on the left is sympathetic to devolution. Some because they dislike nationalism of any kind and see it as divisive. Others because they fear that decentralisation can lead to a race to the bottom. This was George Galloway's argument against Scottish independence in the run up to the 2014 referendum.

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Ernie The Smallholder

You got to realise that this new Left party is largely an English party. While I welcome it, this party is for the benefit of the English people who will given an alternative to the Liberal democrats and the Green party. For the English, there was no alternative for those that identify as socialist or communist. BUT, the current system is a hard monopoly capitalist regime which is very politically and economically centralised in power, ownership and decision making. We need to transfer wealth to the people. Unfortunately, socialism has seen power and wealth transfer to the state or government which become very centralised in power and even imposed a monopolist central planned economy with disastrous consequences. This is why building a Liberal democracy with egalitarian capitalism is the most democratic system and with Plaid Cymru in Wales and the Liberal Democrats in England will provide our countries with the greatest fairness and freedoms as independent democratic countries.

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Rob

If I was in England then I would vote for the Liberal Democrats. Pro-EU, pro-devolution and pro-electoral reform. Corbyn is a Lexiteer, does he support closer ties to the EU?

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David Richards

There already is a socialist party in Wales. A party that has much better policies on key welsh issues - like welsh indy, a proper devolution setllement and wales having full control over its own resources - than any party set up by two MPs based in England will ever have....and that party is plaid cymru!

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J Jones

The three words that stand out to expose the real problem: ...GIVEN SO LITTLE... You don't live life by demanding that you are 'GIVEN' by others, regardless of how little you chose to put in to society. The Labour (aka WORK) party strived to represent those who would work to the best of their ability, EDUCATING them for their lives, knowing that they would be treated and protected if ILL, then pensioned when OLD. Anyone in this country can still CHOSE a life where they put nothing into society, but should not be surprised that those who do contribute have reducing sympathy for those who don't. These days the Loony Left only opens the door for the Nasty Right.

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Tucker

I see you resort to childish name calling once again. I suppose you support disabled people being thrown into poverty and Rachel Reeves changing the law to siite unscrupulous lenders and the pension age rising again.

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Llyn

This is insane and will assist one party - the far-right English nationalist Reform UK. This Pty will also have a negative impact on Plaid and will mean they have zero chance of winning next year's election. Let's take south east Wales, where Plaid are not doing well (Plaid got a pathetic 7.2% in yesterday's Llanrumney bye-election). At the moment left-wing progressive voters have one an alternative to Labour who have a chance of winning seats - Plaid. Now they'll have Corbyn's Pty, which the media will be talking about nearly as much as Reform. Tens of thousands of potential Plaid voters will switch. Then in the rest of Wales this new party will simply split the left/progressive vote and leave Reform UK to become by far the biggest party in the Senedd. If that's what Plaid voters want then they are simply turkey's wishing for Christmas..

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Ernie The Smallholder

Corbyn's Left party is an English party. It is irrelevant to Cymru Wales, and the Welsh people are not English and never will be. We will be proud once again to be European citizens of the EU. Corbyn is very unlikely to give Wales an independent nation which we need. Instead, Corbyn will impose a centralised socialist UK onto Wales, too similar to what is now happening today with 'two parties conspiring together' current arrangement. I would be happy if I am wrong but this is what we see so far. We have seen how centralised planned economies panned out in Eastern Europe. We need a strong Plaid Cymru to deliver self determination for the Welsh people.

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Smae

Oh I dunno some of us interbred lol. Some of us have welsh heritage, born in england now live in wales (for decades) and want to see Wales stand on its own two feet. I don't personally see Corbyn's new party making any inroads in Wales (yet) it seems largely to be an English thing but the detail is yet to come out. That being said we could do with better progressive taxation where the wealth hoarders are made to pay their fair share and the wealth creators (the people actually doing the work at the bottom of the food chain) being properly supported and paid more. Hopefully, meaning that the tax burden would be come more even over time and decreasing inequality

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Gerallt Llewelyn Rhys.

Thank goodness for Jezza.

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Rheinallt morgan

Last time Jeremy was in charge membership of the Labour Party surged and all that happened was Jeremy gave Boris a thumping majority and the red wall. I wonder who Jeremy will give a thumping majority to this time and is there something akin to the red wall he can give them as well.

Reply

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Replying to Rob Cancel

I agree. Not everyone on the left is sympathetic to devolution. Some because they dislike nationalism of any kind and see it as divisive. Others because they fear that decentralisation can lead to a race to the bottom. This was George Gallo...

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