Left parties

Facing reality – after the crisis in the SWP January 2013
John Palmer looks at some of the roots of the party's problems, and asks where the left can go from here

Bradford’s revolt: Why I left Labour to back Respect August 2012
Bradford community activist Naweed Hussein had been a member of the Labour Party since his teens – until he left to join George Galloway’s victorious by-election campaign. Here he speaks to Jenny Pearce

Why I resigned from the Green Party April 2012
Joseph Healy, a founder member of the Green Left, explains why he left the Green Party of England and Wales

Leanne Wood: Why I’m standing for the Plaid Cymru leadership January 2012
Leanne Wood AM sets out a socialist vision for Wales.

A revolutionary without a revolution October 2011
John Palmer on lessons learned from the life of socialist Tony Cliff

A Scottish tragedy August 2011
Liz Davies finds Alan McCombes’ account of Tommy Sheridan’s downfall painful but necessary

Oh yes, I’ve seen you on Question Time May 2010
In a handful of seats, there is a real chance that left and green candidates could be elected as MPs. Andrea D'Cruz went to Birmingham to check up on Salma Yaqoob's campaign for Respect, and to Brighton and Lewisham to assess the Green Party's prospects

A way to win September 2008
Looking outside Britain can restore your faith in the left's chances

Just a talking shop? September 2008
Do socialists' meetings have a structure problem?

Enough of elections already! September 2008
Some are keen to launch yet another unity party out of the convention. They're missing a much better idea

First impressions September 2008
There's potential here - but will it go anywhere?

Shouting at Labour September 2008
Screaming at Labour's conference centre might feel futile, but better that than trying to get inside.

Editorial: A place for the left September 2008
Hilary Wainwright says that the pull of national and local identities away from Westminster is a vital clue to understanding and preparing for the unravelling of New Labour

2014: A Tory dystopia September 2008
David Cameron's apple-pie promises and feel-good rhetoric might sweep him to power in 2010, but there's a yawning gap between the vagueness of his words and the likely consequences of his policies. Alex Nunns takes us on a trip into the future to see how Britain might look after four years of Tory rule

After the party September 2008
In 2004 the Fire Brigades Union disaffiliated from the Labour Party. FBU general secretary Matt Wrack explains what it has meant for the union politically

Radical renewal September 2008
If Labour is to stand any chance of resisting a long-term Tory hegemony, it is going to have to build a new progressive alliance with the Lib Dems, Greens and other smaller parties, argues Patrick Dunleavy. As a first step, it will have to move quickly to renew democratic legitimacy through constitutional and electoral reform

Burying the hatchet September 2008
The Convention of the Left couldn't be happening at a better time - but can the left really work together?

Car crash on the left December 2007
The increasingly bitter division of Respect into two conflicting factions looks set to destroy the most effective electoral challenge to the left of Labour in many years. Alex Nunns spoke to the main protagonists on either side of the split

Any Respect left? November 2007
With the implosion of Respect, Hilary Wainwright asks can anything be learnt for the future or is it a moment simply of despair?

Breaking up Britain November 2007
With Labour in danger of losing control at Holyrood, Roz Patterson looks at the politics of the SNP, the debates over independence, the tactics of the Greens and the frustrations and hopes of the Scottish Socialist Party of which she is a member

Fresh Spice: Red Pepper old and new August 2007
In October 2007 Red Pepper moves to a bigger, new-look bi-monthly format, at the same time as greatly expanding its web presence. Here co-editor Hilary Wainwright reviews its role in providing a platform and a voice for all those whose hopes of change in 1997 have been deflated by the Blatcherism that followed, but who still share a real sense of possibility for the future

Politics outside the box May 2007
Red Pepper's first issue came out 13 years ago this month, shortly before Tony Blair became Labour leader. As we celebrate outlasting him, and prepare for a new phase in our development (more of which later), Hilary Wainwright sets the wider scene for the independent left.

Busy being reborn December 2006
The Scottish Socialist Party has picked itself up after the 'Tommygate' shenanigans, says Roz Paterson, and is trying out new ways of building a socialist party

Solidarity forever October 2006
Tommy Sheridan says he wants to build a different kind of organisation, not continue to fight internal battles in the SSP

A tale of two meetings October 2006
At the beginning of September two rallies took place in Glasgow - one for the renewal of the Scottish Socialist Party (SSP) and one for Tommy Sheridan's breakaway grouping, Solidarity. Jim Jepps was present at both

No more heroes October 2006
The Scottish Socialist Party, one of the most successful political initiatives of the British left in decades, has been torn apart by its former convenor Tommy Sheridan's libel action over sex allegations in the News of the World. Here, Roz Paterson tells the story from the perspective of those who have remained with the SSP.

Is the party over? April 2006
The 2007 Scottish elections are being billed as ‘make or break’ for the Scottish Socialist Party, which has struggled to build on its electoral breakthrough in 2003. Gregor Gall argues that its success is crucial to the left both north and south of the border

Who will speak for us? March 2006
There is a deepening crisis of political representation in the UK. As the main parties narrow the electoral contest to a diminishing patch of ‘centre-ground’, who will give voice to those whose views are unrepresented? Hilary Wainwright considers the political challenge facing the left

Respect where it’s due? April 2005
Is George Galloway's 'unity coalition' the model of how a new party can break into a closed political system, or just a single-issue organisation with no prospects beyond the East End of London? Natasha Grzincic reports

There is no way forward for a coalition August 2004
The Greens are a small party, with no mega sponsors and no state funding. We have to work quite hard for each vote we get, but that effort means a great deal to the people who give us their votes.

Respect is diverse, transparent and open to all August 2004
The success of Respect and the Greens in June shows there's a constituency out there that will vote for an alternative left, anti-war space. Had the left vote been unified, its message to the general public would have been more credible. A big left vote could have encouraged the trade unions to break open more political funds, and could have also galvanised the left inside Labour.

Losses and gains of June elections July 2004
Over the past two years the anti-war movement has successfully challenged the manufactured consensus of the powerful. To find out what is being done in their name, people have sought out and opened up numerous paths to the truth. Websites, for example, are giving voice to the opposition in Iraq, and to whistleblowers in the US, UK and UN. We are piecing together information that was previously in the public domain only as fragments.

Scotland’s brave new world May 2004
Roz Paterson celebrates the plurality and electoral success of the Scottish Socialist Party

Unity coalition to take on Labour in euro poll December 2003
George Galloway has announced plans for an anti-war coalition to stand in next year's European elections. Galloway has also declared that he had no intention of seeking readmission to the Labour Party.

On the streets AND on the doorsteps November 2003
Politically, more and more people today are drawing the conclusion that protest is not enough. The time has come to provide genuine, proactive alternatives.