By Hilary Schan and Kate Dove

On Sunday 10th March, Momentum held our first ever all-member convention, online. We did so amidst a difficult political climate within Labour, from Starmer’s purge and selection stitch-ups to his Great Moving Right Show on economic, social and foreign policy.

But the Convention showed the resilience of our movement. Hundreds of our members took part from across Britain and beyond to decide our next steps, with the majority of time given over to member debate and voting, a testament to our democratic socialist principles. And it was clear from the energy and enthusiasm of attendees, as well as the dozens of individuals and affiliates who submitted motions, that only the left has the answers to the deep crises facing our country.

The day began with a recap of Momentum’s evolution over the years since our founding in 2015. Katy Clark MSP paid tribute to the culture of grassroots policymaking developed in the Corbyn years, while our co-founder James Schneider talked about the huge appetite in the country for far-reaching political and economic reform, the energy of Corbynism in mobilising it after 2015, and the need for a vehicle for that change today.

As well as tackling the longer-term priorities of Momentum, members debated where we should prioritise our campaigning efforts. It should come as no surprise that, amidst Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza, members chose to prioritise the issue of Palestine. A composite motion submitted by Labour CND, former Co-Chair Gaya Sriskanthan and others was selected – we will now campaign for an immediate ceasefire, the suspension of arms sales to Israel, the restoration of funding to UNRWA and accountability for Israel’s war crimes. In addition to our ongoing digital campaigning, we are committed to developing motions and presences on demonstrations, too.

But recognising that Israel’s oppression of Palestinians did not start five months ago, we will work to tackle the root causes, namely occupation and apartheid, by promoting BDS in councils across the country, while continuing to resist Tory efforts to criminalise it.

Additionally, our National Coordinating Group will also consider the second-placed  campaign on local government funding. As the crisis of Tory austerity continues to hit councils, it’s vital the next Labour government reforms local government financing to revive our communities and ensure long-term sustainability. Fiscal conservatism won’t cut it.

Equally important as campaigns, however, was our long-term strategy. There was a consensus amongst attendees that Momentum should continue to retain and build left involvement within the Labour Party as a priority. To this end, a majority voted to retain the requirement for Momentum members to be Labour members. Members also voted for a renewed focus on political education, helping to build and develop our movement’s collective consciousness.

Alongside these long-term objectives, we must now roll out the political strategy agreed at the Convention for the coming months. So ahead of the General Election, we will have a dual focus: one, supporting the left’s candidates in internal Labour elections; and secondly, working with allies to lay out five key transformative policy programme needed to fix the Tories’ broken Britain.

A constant throughout the Convention, from speakers Katy Clark and John McDonnell to individual contributors, was the insufficiency of Starmer’s programme and the need for us to be ready and waiting with a socialist alternative. So we need to be clear now that only bold policies, embodying real Labour values, can fix the crises facing us. Whether that’s nationalisation and proper funding of our public services, mass council house building, wealth taxes or political reform, this programme is backed by the labour movement, backed by the public and more needed than ever.

So before and after the Election, we will continue to organise and, where possible grow, a left presence within Labour; strengthen relations with our friends in the trade union movement; and defend real Labour values, if necessary against a leadership which fails to advocate for them. Momentum was founded to campaign for a socialist Labour Party enacting socialist policies – that’s what we’ll continue to do in the months and years to come.

It’s vital we maintain and build our organisation as a movement. Concomitantly, we must recognise the importance of democracy in sustaining a member-led movement, as we do within Labour. Within this context, members voted to send a constitutional amendment to an all-member vote which would ensure a members’ ballot on any endorsement for Leader / Deputy Leader, with our National Coordinating Group retaining discretion on the format in the regrettable case of no Socialist Campaign Group MP appearing on the ballot. We have been clear, following Refounding, that there will be no repeat of the 2020 débacle which damaged trust among members. This ballot will be held, alongside a change to the criteria for Momentum affiliates, in the coming weeks.

We all know it’s not easy on the left right now. But we should take heart from the fact that Starmer’s counter-revolution came from above, not below. He did not win the argument against democratic selections, public ownership or a principled internationalism – he imposed them. Our Convention shows that our democratic socialist movement retains its values, ideas and strategies. The struggle continues.

Hilary Schan and Kate Dove are Co-Chairs of Momentum.