Jeremy Corbyn has admitted “we haven’t covered ourselves in glory” after a string of embarrassing setbacks and weeks of bitter infighting at the top of Your Party.
Relaunching its paid-up membership service, the former Labour leader apologised for “the confusion in getting to this point” as he urged backers of the new left-wing outfit to “move on” and sign up as founding members ahead of its first conference in November.
It comes after Mr Corbyn last week said he was seeking legal advice after his party's co-leader, Zarah Sultana, sent an “unauthorised email” from Your Party’s account, inviting its supporters to become paid members, apparently without his backing.
That promoted a furious row between the pair, which saw Ms Sultana claim she had been on the receiving end of “baseless attacks” and announce she had consulted defamation lawyers.
But in a video posted on social media platform X, Mr Corbyn appeared to be trying to move on, saying: “We’ve had some drought days in the last week, as you will no doubt be very aware, and to be honest, we haven’t covered ourselves in glory.
“But what is most important is this: we all agree about the plans for the conference and the road map to get to it.”
Ms Sultana, who has clashed with Mr Corbyn over leadership roles and their visions for the party, was featured in pictures throughout the video as the supposed co-leaders seek to rebuild ties.
In it, Mr Corbyn said: “To all our supporters, I am sorry for the confusion in getting to this point. Together, all of us, let’s move on to the next stage.”
Ms Sultana later posted on X: “I’m a member of Your Party - and if you haven’t joined yet, you should too. I’ll remain a fierce advocate for the grassroots – and will continue to fight hard for maximum member democracy.
“For those who joined the previous system: data and membership will be migrated across in due course. We have a world to win. Let’s get to work!”
Relations between Mr Corbyn and Ms Sultana had been rocky since she quit the Labour Party in July and announced she would co-lead a party with the veteran left-winger.
Mr Corbyn appeared to have been caught off guard by the announcement and did not respond until the next day.
She then accused him of having “capitulated” over antisemitism in a stinging critique of Mr Corbyn’s time as Labour leader. He said it was “not really necessary for her to bring all that up”.
But relations hit rock bottom when Ms Sultana threatened legal action in a spat with the other pro-Gaza independent MPs who make up Your Party’s parliamentary ranks. She described a “sexist boys’ club” attitude behind the party amid a row over the party’s membership system.
And she lashed out at “a number of false and defamatory statements” made around the party’s launch after she unilaterally invited supporters to sign up for paid memberships.
Supporters of Ms Sultana and Mr Corbyn have been seeking to rebuild ties between the pair behind the scenes, and Ms Sultana on Sunday said she would drop any legal proceedings.
“The stakes are too high for failure to be an option,” she said, promising to reconcile with Mr Corbyn.
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