Breakthrough Party

The **Breakthrough Party** is a minor political party in the United Kingdom. The party describes itself as a "new home for those determined to disrupt the failed status quo and build an alternative: a society that uses its considerable wealth to provide dignity, security and justice for all". The party's constitution declares it to be a democratic socialist party It was registered with the Electoral Commission in January 2021.

## History

The Breakthrough Party was founded in 2021 by Alex Mays, a former member of the Labour Party, in response to the 2020 Labour Party leadership election.

On 20 January 2022, it was announced that a "memorandum of understanding" had been agreed between Breakthrough, the Northern Independence Party, the Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition and Left Unity under the name Peoples Alliance of The Left (PAL) and organised by former Labour MP Thelma Walker. This alliance will work together on a future electoral strategy. On 29 January 2022, PAL came out in support of Dave Nellist's candidacy in the 2022 Birmingham Erdington by election.

In mid-August the party released their manifesto, covering a broad range of policy aims in community, democracy, economy, education, environment, equality, foreign policy, health, housing, immigration, independent living, justice, media, culture and sport, transport and work. The manifesto, titled a "minifesto" stated in its foreword "Our aim is simple: to offer a genuine alternative in a political landscape which is lurching further rightwards."

## Elections and elected representatives

The party's first appearance on a ballot paper was in the 2021 Chesham and Amersham by-election, when Carla Gregory, a charity worker from the local area ran. She received 197 votes, which represents 0.5 per cent of the vote. As of the end of 2021 no candidate had yet stood for the party at any council election.

Various sitting councillors have defected to Breakthrough. On 16 August 2021 Samantha Cooper, a Labour councillor on Keighley Town Council (representing Woodhouse and Hainworth ward), defected from the Labour Party and became the first Breakthrough councillor and elected representative. On 12 November, it was announced that a second Labour town councillor had defected to the Breakthrough Party, Katie Parker of Bury St. Edmunds town council, and on 16 November the chair of Thorngumbald Parish Council, Ben Munro, also defected from Labour to Breakthrough.

On 27 January 2022 the Mayor of Bangor, and a former member of Plaid Cymru, Owen Hurcum, announced that they had joined the Party and was to serve the rest of their term as a Breakthrough Party representative. They had previously been sitting as an independent.

On 4 February 2022, Jonathan A. Graham, a councillor on Folkestone Town Council, defected from Labour to the Breakthrough Party saying, "I cannot, in good conscience, stay in an undemocratic and unsocialist party. I have no confidence in Keir Starmer's leadership or the direction he and his disastrous team are taking Labour." On 24 February 2022, a Labour town councillor in Westgate-on-Sea, Tim Green, announced his intention to defect to the Breakthrough Party.

On 8 March 2022, it was announced that two borough councillors (Veena Siva and Jenny Vinson), originally elected for Labour on Spelthorne Borough Council had defected to the party, giving Breakthrough its first representation on a principal authority.

The party announced that several candidates would stand in the 2022 United Kingdom local elections. After nominations were announced it was confirmed that two candidates would be standing for the Breakthrough Party in the 2022 UK local elections; Nazma Meah in the Aston ward for the 2022 Birmingham City Council election and Ewan Chappell in the Penygroes/Pen-y-groes ward for the 2022 Carmarthenshire County Council election. In the election for the Aston ward in the Birmingham City Council election in England, two seats were available. The party's candidate, Nazma Meah, finished in 5th place out of 9 candidates with 265 votes, finishing above both Conservative Party candidates. In the Penygroes seat in the Carmarthenshire County Council in Wales, one seat was available. The party's candidate for this seat, Ewan Chappell, finished in 4th place out of 4 candidates with 87 votes, equating to 9% of the vote.

On 15 May 2022, it was announced that Oscar Wolf had been appointed as deputy leader of the party after elections triggered by the earlier resignation of Sherilyn Wileman.

## Policies

The party has ten core policies listed on its website: a "£16 minimum wage"; scrapping zero hour contracts and banning "fire and rehire"; "renationalisation of the NHS and social care"; "genuinely affordable housing, for need not profit"; limiting rents to 30 per cent of local income and an end to no-fault evictions; a universal basic income; "publicly owned utilities, transport and broadband"; defence of the right to protest "and stand in solidarity with marginalised communities"; an effort to "collaborate across borders to build a global Green New Deal"; and proportional representation.