UK Labour Faces Crisis as Corbyn Plots Breakaway Party

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The Labour Party is reportedly facing fresh turmoil as new polling suggests almost one in four of its members may be prepared to abandon Sir Keir Starmer and support Jeremy Corbyn’s planned breakaway movement.

A survey conducted by Survation for the LabourList website revealed that 28 per cent of Labour members would consider backing the former leader’s yet-to-be-named party. The movement, which Corbyn announced in July alongside fellow MP Zarah Sultana, is expected to be launched formally in the autumn.

The poll, based on responses from 1,021 Labour members earlier this month, underlines dissatisfaction with Starmer’s leadership. Nearly six in ten (59 per cent) said the party should pursue more left-wing policies, while only 2 per cent wanted it to move further to the right. A further 35 per cent preferred faster progress on the party’s current programme.

While some members see Corbyn’s project as a new outlet for disillusioned Labour supporters, others warned it could split the left and inadvertently boost Conservative or Reform UK chances in the next general election. A majority of respondents (51 per cent) expressed this concern, while 14 per cent thought it would have no real impact, and 12 per cent believed the Green Party would be the main loser.

Corbyn reportedly welcomed the findings, framing his movement as an alternative to what he described as inequality and war. “For too long, people have been denied a real political choice. Not any more: 700,000 people have already signed up to build a real alternative,” he said, claiming his party would champion public ownership, housing, and wealth redistribution.

The announcement comes as Labour continues to lose ground in membership. Official accounts reportedly reveal the party has shed almost 200,000 members in five years, with a further 37,215 departing last year alone — nearly 10 per cent of the remaining total.

Labour officials, however, dismissed suggestions of a meltdown. A party source insisted that Starmer remained focused on “creating a fairer Britain for working people” and downplayed the risk posed by Corbyn’s initiative.

Nevertheless, the figures add to mounting signs of unrest among Labour’s grassroots. Surveys repeatedly show many members feel disconnected from Starmer’s leadership style and direction.

The new movement, often referred to by organisers as Your Party, is still in its preparatory phase. A date and location for its founding conference have yet to be confirmed, but the launch is expected to include leadership elections and formal registration. Alongside Corbyn and Sultana, four other MPs who reportedly won seats last July as independents on a pro-Gaza platform are steering the project.

Notably, veteran Labour MP Diane Abbott said she advised Corbyn not to proceed, warning that Britain’s first-past-the-post electoral system makes it difficult for new parties to achieve meaningful success. Speaking at the Edinburgh International Book Festival, Abbott said: “It’s very difficult under the first-past-the-post system for a new party to win. If it wasn’t first past the post, then you can see how a new party could come through, but I understand why he did it.”

Abbott, who confirmed she would not be joining despite her long friendship with Corbyn, said the new party could still attract votes from people disappointed with Labour but not necessarily aligned with the hard left. She praised Sultana as “a lovely person who is full of energy”, but questioned the long-term viability of the project.

The possibility of a Corbyn-backed breakaway party comes at a precarious time for Starmer. Polls suggest widespread discontent among the public with his government’s performance, while Reform UK is gaining traction as an alternative on the right.

If Corbyn’s project secures enough support to fracture Labour’s base, it could tilt marginal constituencies away from Starmer and open the door for Conservatives or Reform to capitalise.

As Labour’s internal rifts deepen and grassroots frustrations mount, Starmer faces the challenge of holding his party together while preventing defections to both left and right. Corbyn’s movement, once dismissed as a side-show, now threatens to become a decisive factor in the next general election.