Your Party’s first conference shows little sign of achieving fresh start | Jeremy Corbyn

When the idea of ​​a new left-wing party, led by Jeremy Corbyn and Zarah Sultana, was first floated in the summer, it was so popular that hundreds of thousands of people expressed interest in joining.

Although controversy quickly surrounded it (the co-founders argued bitterly over the startup’s leadership and funding model), many hoped this weekend’s inaugural conference would signal a new beginning.

The majority of the 2,500 delegates are former Labor members who are disillusioned with the current government’s policies and are looking for a political home while worrying about the rise of Reformation UK.

Sultana and Corbyn appeared to have buried the hatchet as plans for the party’s first official meeting were finalised. Sultana, who attended a leftist festival in Manchester last month, playfully compared the pair to the Gallagher brothers and said: “I’m here to tell you the show is back on the road.”

But when the doors of the conference center in Liverpool opened on Saturday morning, Sultana was strangely missing. Corbyn was sipping hot chocolate in a cafe about a mile away from the venue as he delivered his opening speech.

It turned out that there was no common attitude on how the party should be run. Corbyn told reporters he preferred a traditional leadership model in which one person would take charge, and said he would likely run if members voted for that option.

But in an interview with the Guardian, Sultana said he supported a collective leadership structure in which key decisions were made by rank-and-file members who were not currently serving as MPs or councillors. He added that he did not think parties should be run by “one-persons”. But he also said he would be willing to stand against Corbyn if there was competition for a single leader.

Although Sultana insisted he and the former Labor leader were on “really good terms” – he said they told him they wanted the conference to be “a positive, joyful experience where members feel empowered” – he had harsh words for some of his allies and Your Party officials who he believed were briefing against him. He declined to name names but relations between his supporters and Corbyn’s former chief of staff, Karie Murphy, are understood to be particularly strained.

The Coventry South MP, who quit Labor in July, added that there was still a “toxic culture” among others in your Party that led to “bullying, intimidation and slander” and “deliberate acts of sabotage”.

Tensions came to a head at noon when it was revealed that Sultana would boycott the first day of the conference in solidarity with prospective delegates who had been turned away from the event due to their affiliation with other left-wing groups, especially the Socialist Workers Party. His spokesman called it a “witch hunt” and added: “We must build a party that embraces all socialists.”

Corbyn’s allies, who falsely claimed on Saturday morning that the Socialist Workers Party was registered with the Electoral Commission, were furious and accused Sultana of trying to organize a “side demonstration”. They believe that allowing multi-party membership would lead to confusion and increase the factionalism that already appears to be paralyzing the fledgling movement.

One Corbyn ally said of the Socialist Workers Party’s status: “It may not be registered with the Electoral Commission but it’s still a party. The clue is in the name.”

Many delegates were disappointed that Saturday’s sessions turned into factionalism, preferring to discuss key issues such as livelihoods and immigration, as well as strategizing for next year’s local elections.

Your party has not yet decided whether to field its own candidates or support socialist independents, and some members think the party will fail if it is not on the ballot paper as an alternative to Labour.

It is not yet known whether the hearings can be saved on Sunday, when the results of important votes such as the party’s permanent name and leadership structure will be announced. Sultana plans to attend by giving a speech that will reassure those who still hold out hope for unity.

But many of the delegates who emerged from the conference hall on Saturday into a rainy Liverpool night were in despair. Perhaps there was someone who summed up the mood of the day with these words: “My great glass of wine is turning into a bottle.”