The Next political chapter after abandoning The Labour Party...

Coming to terms with disconnecting myself from the parliamentary Labour Party has been difficult, especially after so many years supporting the movement only to become politically homeless. For years, I was a staunch supporter of the Labour Party, my red scarf tied so tightly around my neck that it cut off the oxygen to my brain, blinding me to the possibility that a Labour leader could be anything but a socialist or, at the very least, a social democrat.

However, the recent announcement of £6 billion in welfare cuts (Stewart & Walker, 2024) and the rollback of the already toothless non-dom tax policy have shattered any last illusions I had about Keir Starmer’s Labour. These betrayals, alongside the party’s broader shift towards neoliberalism, have forced me to make a decision I never thought I would: I have handed back my Labour membership.

Labour’s leadership, in a desperate bid for electability, has abandoned the working class. The party is now little more than a centrist vehicle for maintaining the status quo, no longer fighting for radical change or meaningful wealth redistribution. Starmer’s administration is bound to implode, not least because it refuses to offer anything beyond managed decline in an era crying out for transformation.

Why I Am Joining Transform Politics UK

Rather than resigning myself to disenfranchisement, I am choosing to be part of something new. Today, I am proud to announce that I am joining Transform Politics UK. This is not just a reaction to Labour’s failures—it is a proactive decision to support a party that genuinely represents socialist values and the interests of working-class people.

Transform Politics UK is a growing movement committed to radical change, tackling wealth inequality, and breaking the two-party stranglehold on British democracy. Unlike Labour, Transform stands firm on policies that directly challenge neoliberalism, including:

• A Wealth Tax on the super-rich to fund public services and address systemic inequality.
• A Universal Basic Income to provide financial security and dignity for all citizens.
• Public Ownership of Essential Services, including energy, water, and rail, to ensure they serve people, not profit.
• Free Education from early years to university, fully funded through progressive taxation.
• Rent Controls and Social Housing Expansion to combat the housing crisis and protect tenants.
• A Green New Deal to invest in renewable energy and create well-paid, unionised jobs.

These policies offer a real alternative to the managed decline of Labour and the cruelty of Conservative rule. By joining Transform, I am choosing hope over resignation, action over apathy.

Labour’s Rightward Drift: A Party Losing Its Soul

The footballification of politics – the blind allegiance to a party regardless of its policies or leadership – must not cloud our judgment. I once believed Labour would always be a force for social justice. However, this faith has been eroded by repeated compromises that betray working-class communities. Starmer has distanced himself from the pledges that saw him elected leader in 2020 (Cowley, 2023). His party has promised not to raise wealth taxes (Elliott, 2024), refused to back a significant Green New Deal, and committed to fiscal rules indistinguishable from Conservative austerity logic.

The most recent welfare cuts are particularly egregious. As scholars like Lister (2023) have argued, reductions in welfare spending disproportionately affect low-income families, exacerbating poverty and social exclusion. The rollback of the proposed non-dom tax reforms also demonstrates a lack of real commitment to tackling wealth inequality. Instead of taking bold action, Labour is proving itself to be a party of soft neoliberalism (Seymour, 2022), offering no meaningful alternative to Tory rule.

No, I’m Not Joining the Tories (Let’s Be Serious!)

In response to my criticisms of Labour, some have jokingly asked whether I plan to join the Conservative Party next. Let me be clear: as a socialist, the idea of joining the Tories is about as appealing as buying one of Elon Musk's Tesla's.

This false dichotomy, where rejecting Labour supposedly means embracing a right wing party, is reductive. It represents a cognative dissonance and loyalty to the rigid two-party system that stifles real debate and alternative visions for society.

Taking Action: Rallying for Change

On March 29th, I will be attending the Peace & Justice rally in London, where Jeremy Corbyn will be speaking alongside grassroots activists. This rally will call for systemic change, demanding that wealth inequality be recognised as the root cause of many of our crises: the cost of living crisis, the housing crisis, wage stagnation and more (Dorling, 2023).

Labour is no longer leading this fight. Its leadership has proven unwilling to challenge entrenched economic injustices. If we are to create a better future, we must look beyond Labour and toward movements willing to take bold action.

Conclusion: Moving Forward with Purpose

Handing back my Labour membership was not an easy decision. However, the party I once believed in no longer exists. Instead of clinging to an empty husk, I am choosing to build something new. That being said, I do not regret my vote for Labour... after all, even if a government is going to make the working classes poorer, at least they will invest in public services.

Transform Politics UK offers the radical policies that Labour has abandoned, and I intend to play my part in helping it grow and perhaps become a candidate some day.