During this year’s UK general election campaign, the Green Party of England and Wales (GPEW) welcomed hundreds of leftwing activists driven out of Keir Starmer’s Labour. Socialists who had previously been inspired by former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn’s popular programme sought refuge in the arms of a party that championed the key tenets of his project – the nationalization of utilities, a green industrial revolution and justice for the people of Palestine.
Compared with the leaders of Britain’s mainstream political parties, the Greens’ co-leader Carla Denyer offered ‘real change’ to break with the political orthodoxy – or at least stretch it. The electorate responded by awarding the Greens 6.7 per cent of the vote and three new seats, bringing the party’s parliamentary representation to a record four MPs.
