Iain WatsonPolitical correspondent and
Becky MortonPolitical reporter
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Allies of Jeremy Corbyn have said they are “disappointed” at the deep divisions which have emerged between Zarah Sultana and the former Labour leader over the formation of a new party.
Some of those closely involved told the BBC they believe further attempts at reconciliation should be undertaken but are not hopeful of a result.
However, they still believe there is appetite for a new left-wing party and want to push ahead with the venture.
On Thursday, Sultana accused Corbyn of overseeing a “sexist boys’ club”, saying she had been sidelined by other members of the party’s working group.
It came after an email went out to supporters inviting people to sign up for full membership for £5 a month or £55 a year.
Sultana had posted on her social media account encouraging people to join as paid-up members and claimed more than 20,000 people had signed up.
But in a statement, Corbyn said the emails were “unauthorised” and should be ignored, while any direct debits set up should be “immediately cancelled”.
The statement was also signed by Ayoub Khan, Adnan Hussain, Iqbal Mohamed and Shockat Adam – four independent MPs who are involved in founding the party – with Sultana’s name conspicuously missing from the list.
The new party does not yet have an official name but is being called “Your Party” in campaign material.
Some allies of Corbyn believe Sultana was trying to mount a leadership bid for a party that has not yet been officially founded by signing people up.
Corbyn has not agreed to co-leadership, although he has not ruled this out, so some suspected she was preparing to “go it alone”.
Sultana has not responded to the BBC’s requests for comment.
In a statement on Thursday, Sultana said she had launched a membership portal to allow supporters to “continue to engage and organise”.
She insisted it was “in line with the road map set out to members” and was “a safe, secure, legitimate portal for the party”.
The Coventry South MP added that membership funds were being held by a company set up by the party to safeguard money until its founding conference in November.
Allies of Corbyn deny Sultana was shut out from consultations and said no decision was made by the working group on data and finances.
The party said it had referred the matter to the UK’s data protection watchdog, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).
The ICO said it was assessing the information provided.
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Zarah Sultana is a former Labour MP who left the party in July
Andrew Fisher, who was Corbyn’s policy director when he was Labour leader, said the row was “a very unedifying spectacle played out in public between the two most prominent people associated with [the party] by a mile”.
“If they can’t get their act together between them, it doesn’t give people a lot of faith that the vehicle can get off the ground,” he told BBC Radio 4’s World at One programme.
Fisher said that while there was clearly “enthusiasm” for the party from the public, the infighting may push some potential supporters towards the Green Party instead.
“I suspect a lot of people… have probably looked at this and gone, ‘Nope, not worth the bother. I might join the Greens with Zach Polanski, who is an articulate leader in a stable party that is making left-wing arguments’.” he said.
“And maybe that’s the vehicle that will take off as a result of this.”
Polanski, who was elected as the new leader of the Green Party of England and Wales earlier this month, said thousands of people had joined the party since he took over, with its membership passing 75,000 this week.
Asked whether rows within Your Party could benefit the Greens, Polanski told the BBC: “I really like Jeremy Corbyn and Zarah Sultana, and my door’s always open for conversations.”
But he added: “The Green Party just really have momentum at the moment, and we don’t have time to waste.
“I know a lot of people in this country right now want to see a party ready to challenge Reform and challenge this deeply unpopular Labour government, and that’s exactly what I intend to do.”
The row is the latest falling out at the top of the new group, which was launched in July and is due to hold its founding conference in November.
It came after Sultana announced she was leaving Labour and starting a new party with Corbyn, a move that took the former Labour leader and others involved in the project by surprise.
The pair also disagreed over the name of the party. In July, Sultana insisted it would not be called Your Party – saying she instead favoured The Left Party – only for Corbyn to hint the name could stay. The final decision on a name is to be put to a vote by supporters.
Despite the bumpy start, the party has said more than 750,000 people have signed up to get involved since its launch.