Sir Keir Starmer

• KEIR Starmer gets stick for not being tough enough with the Tories, but with his own members it’s a different story – as far as I can see he’s declared all-out war on them.

The latest stage in the purge has been the “proscription” of four left groups – which means that any members in these groups will be automatically expelled.

As part of a documentary I am making, I recently filmed hundreds of Labour members protesting against these proscriptions outside the party’s head office in central London.

They say what Starmer is doing is an attack on free speech, natural justice and democracy. They say it’s all part of his plan to root out every trace of the Jeremy Corbyn leadership – and socialism – from the party.

But I don’t think this is going to be easy. Under Corbyn, Labour went from under 200,000 members to over half a million. It became the biggest political party in Western Europe.

The mainstream media gave prominent coverage to every unfounded smear against Jeremy that came their way, while the right inside Labour, MPs and bureaucrats, apparently did everything in their power to undermine his leadership.

Since Starmer’s taken over, a full-blown purge of the Labour left has ensued. Even Jeremy was suspended. The party’s ruling NEC unsuspended him, but Starmer has refused to let him back into the parliamentary party.

Starmer’s troops have even suspended whole local parties. They recently kicked out the neighbouring constituencies of East Ham and West Ham, famous for their popular left-wing community activism, in one fell swoop.

The latest ban on left-wing groups is only a natural extension of the purge. I think other, more well-known groups, including Momentum, may well be next.

But I think that Starmer has gone too far now and many members are working out how they can fight back against the purge.

Already there are plans to set up an alternative Labour Party conference in Brighton pledged to make the case for the full-blooded socialism he’s turning his back on.

This is a real battle for the future of the Labour, but it has big implications for left-wing politics at large.

If you’re interested in getting involved, I would strongly advise you to make a date to come to the Rialto Theatre in Brighton on the last weekend in September and attend the alternative Labour Conference (more details on www.labour-in-exile.org).

CHRIS REEVES
Platform Films
Tankerton Street, WC1