One in five Britons would consider voting for a new left-wing party, rising to one in three young people and Labour voters
A new Ipsos in the UK poll reveals that the left-wing political party recently founded by former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and MP Zarah Sultana could capture a significant segment of the British electorate, particularly among younger voters and those who supported the Labour and Green parties in the 2024 General Election.
Overall, 20% of British adults say they would be ‘very’ or ‘fairly likely’ to consider voting for a new left-wing party. This figure, however, masks a sharp generational divide. A third (33%) of those aged 16-34 would consider voting for the new party, a figure that drops to 22% among 35-54s and just 9% among those aged 55 and over.
The potential for this new party to disrupt the existing political landscape is most evident in its appeal to voters of other left-leaning parties. One-third (33%) of those who voted Labour in 2024 and 43% of 2024 Green party voters would consider lending their vote to a Corbyn-Sultana-led party.
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Commenting on the findings, Keiran Pedley, Director of UK Politics at Ipsos said:
These figures show that a new left-wing party led by Jeremy Corbyn and Zarah Sultana has the potential to shake up British politics. A significant number of younger people are at least prepared to consider voting for it and a majority of those aged under 35 say they would consider voting for some kind of alliance between the new party and the Greens. Clear policies around change, the NHS, poverty and wealth taxes could be popular. Time will tell if the new party can turn this hypothetical appeal into real votes on a significant scale.
Heathrow expansion is a “flightmare on Downing Street” say Greens
Responding to the release of detailed proposals for Heathrow Airport expansion, Green Party MP, Ellie Chowns, reiterated the Green Party’s opposition to airport expansion, saying,
“Heathrow Airport expansion is a flightmare on Downing Street for people and planet. On one hand, this government is saying they’re taking the climate crisis seriously, and on the other, they’re backing a project that will release a reported 4.4m tonnes of CO2 a year. These expansion plans would see the number of flights at Heathrow Airport go up to 720,000 from their current capped number of 480,000 a year.
These expansion plans are, at their heart, aimed to deliver profit for shareholders to enable a small group of people to fly more and more. In the UK we have a few frequent flyers that make up less than 3% of the UK population but take 30% of all journeys. On top of this, they seem oblivious to the impact that these plans will have on the communities currently living around Heathrow. Government must be grounded in reality and look hard at the climate science. No credible net-zero plan can include rampant airport expansion, and it’s time Labour looked to the many, many alternative ways to create high-paid green jobs.”
Green reaction to Starmer’s ‘bargaining chip’ on Palestinian statehood
Reacting to today’s emergency cabinet meeting on Gaza and Keir Stamer’s statement, Green Party MP, Ellie Chowns, the party’s foreign affairs spokesperson, said:
“What Starmer has said today suggests Palestinian statehood is a bargaining chip, only to be awarded if the Israeli government fails to end the genocide in Gaza and agrees to a range of other conditions such as allowing the UN to restart the supply of aid and ending annexations in the West Bank.
“While these conditions are welcome and essential steps towards a ceasefire and a peaceful solution, they must not be an alternative to recognising Palestinian statehood. This is a cynical political gesture ahead of the outcomes of the UN Conference and suggests that if Israel were to comply with the demands, Palestinian statehood would be kicked down the road again, disenfranchising the Palestinian people.
“The Green Party calls on Keir Starmer to immediately and unconditionally recognise a Palestinian state as part of a two-state solution, just as Labour promised to do in their election manifesto.”
ICJ ruling leaves UK with duty to speed up green transition
Reacting to the International Court of Justice’s first-ever ruling on climate change, co-leader of the Green Party, Carla Denyer MP, said:
“In a landmark ruling today the ICJ has made clear that failure to take decisive action to protect the climate, through continued fossil fuel production and consumption and granting fossil fuel exploration licences, can be considered as acting ‘wrongfully’. This means the UK has a legal duty to speed up the transition towards a cleaner, greener economy and block any new licences for the extraction of fossil fuels.
“The ruling also made clear that human rights must be at the heart of climate action because climate breakdown affects our rights to health, homes, and livelihoods.
“The court has recognised that rich countries like the UK, responsible for ongoing and historic pollution, have a special responsibility to act, and to offer compensation to countries and communities already suffering from floods, droughts, and rising sea levels.
“Today’s ruling should be the moment we draw a line. Governments that fail to act and polluters that refuse to clean up their act must no longer be allowed to harm communities either at home or across the globe with impunity.”