Convention of the Left


The Convention of the Left is an annual conference of British left, socialist, progressive and green parties and organisations, first held in Manchester in September 2008. The format of the conference was that it 'shadowed' the Labour Party's 2008 Annual Conference, also being held in the city. A 'recall' event was held in the city in January 2009.

Aims and values

The 'Statement of Intent' for the Convention was that it aimed to "explicitly challenge Labour's programme of warmongering, neoliberal privatisation and failure to tackle environmental destruction." The statement was signed by:
While the CL had managed to attract the support of both Respect Renewal and the Socialist Workers' Party, the Communist Party of Great Britain dismissed the event as a "talking shop", however the CPGB and its autonomous student group Communist Students signed up as supporters of the convention. The Socialist Party did not sponsor the event as it has its own Campaign for a New Workers' Party and invited the organisers to join their campaign.
The full list of supporting party organisations is as follows:
It was also supported by Morning Star, Red Pepper, Labour Briefing and Socialist Worker.