Senior Labour MPs who orchestrated the rebellion against welfare cuts are relaunching the Tribune group, a soft-left caucus, to influence the upcoming budget and counter the rise of Reform and the Green Party. The group, led by former cabinet minister Louise Haigh and former whip Vicky Foxcroft, aims to attract over 100 MPs and provide a unified voice for the party's soft left.
Key figures include former minister Justin Madders, committee chairs Sarah Owen and Debbie Abrahams, and new MPs Yuan Yang and Beccy Cooper. The group seeks a bolder, openly progressive approach to challenge Reform and the Greens, with an initial focus on ending the two-child benefit limit in the budget.
Tribune, originally formed in 1964 to support the Tribune newspaper, was revived in 2017 under Jeremy Corbyn but had limited success. It has been effectively dormant under Keir Starmer. Now, with new MPs, the group aims to be a more muscular organising force within the Parliamentary Labour Party (PLP), representing a significant minority or majority of MPs.
One MP involved in the relaunch said the soft left has not been organised well for years, making Tribune 'desperately needed.' The group is expected to attract more 2024 intake MPs than the traditional left Socialist Campaign Group, which includes Corbyn allies like John McDonnell and Diane Abbott.
The relaunch follows the summer launch of another left-wing group, Mainstream, backed by Andy Burnham and others, which focuses on electoral reform. However, some MPs were put off by Mainstream's aggressive communications, believing Tribune will have more success organising within the party.
