Film-maker Ken Loach has accused Your Party of squandering a historic opportunity to unite the left against the far right, as the socialist movement founded by Jeremy Corbyn and Zarah Sultana becomes mired in infighting. Speaking ahead of a Cannes screening of his restored film Land and Freedom, Loach said the party’s internal divisions mirrored those that doomed the anti-fascist struggle in the Spanish Civil War.
“There was great hope when Jeremy Corbyn and Zarah Sultana joined forces; 800,000 people expressed interest – that’s three times the size of a political party,” Loach told the Guardian. “But I’m afraid some of the behaviours were very poor and they lost a historic opportunity.”
The director, who was expelled from Labour in 2021, criticised mainstream parties for adopting far-right rhetoric. “The Conservative leadership uses the same language as Nigel Farage, and the Labour right responds to that,” he said, adding that the wealthy fund the far right while blaming the poor.
Loach also condemned Keir Starmer’s leadership, calling current government tensions “a case of when thieves fall out”. He argued that Starmer cannot communicate, unlike Tony Blair, and that Labour has no relation to the labour movement or working-class interests.
Reflecting on the relevance of Land and Freedom, which premiered at Cannes 31 years ago, Loach said fascism now appears under a different guise, using racist language against immigrants to stoke hysteria. He urged film-makers to engage with politics, criticising Wim Wenders for suggesting they should stay out of it.
Loach, who turns 90 next month, has had 15 films in competition at Cannes and won two Palme d’Ors. Land and Freedom, restored in 4K, will screen in the Cinéma de la Plage strand on Tuesday.
