PROGRESSIVE solidarity is the key, says Andrew Feinstein, the candidate who gave Keir Starmer a scare in his own constituency at the general election.

Now that solidarity is being used in an attempt to wrest control of the Prime Minister’s home borough, Camden in north London, from the Labour Party.

An alliance of the Green Party and the Camden People’s Alliance (CPA) is fighting every seat for the council, aiming to remove Starmer’s cronies from power in a borough Labour has controlled for all but seven of the 61 years of its municipal existence.

The unity makes sense since both the local Greens and the CPA largely comprise one-time supporters of Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership of the Labour Party. Doubtless that is not unique to Camden. Certainly it is a formula being repeated elsewhere — in Waltham Forest, east London, for example, the Greens are standing aside in three wards in favour of Chingford independents aligned with popular local parliamentary candidate Faiza Shaheen.

In Camden, the CPA is leading the charge for change in two wards — King’s Cross and St Pancras/Somers Town — with the Greens standing in the rest.

There are real hopes of ending Labour control of Camden. At the 2024 general election, Starmer’s personal vote in Holborn and St Pancras, which covers much of the borough, fell by half, to just 18,000, a fact few political commentators choose to draw attention to.

It turns out the Prime Minister was far more popular locally when Labour was led by Jermey Corbyn than when he was in charge himself. The other Camden seat, Hampstead and Highgate, is held by Tulip Siddiq, Starmer’s anti-corruption minister until she was investigated in Bangladesh for — corruption. She was later convicted in absentia on charges which she contests.

Feinstein, who won more than 7,000 votes, or nearly 20 per cent of the total, in 2024 spells out the case for the progressive bloc: “The residents of Camden want change. They may have reluctantly given Labour a chance at the general election, albeit with a halved vote, but they have now had enough. Camden residents do not feel listened to in the key areas of housing, poverty, community safety and the current council’s attitude to the tragedy we have seen unfolding in Gaza.

“Partly for these reasons, the local community launched the Camden People’s Alliance (CPA). For too long local voices haven’t been heard on the council and the CPA plans to change that.

“Progressive solidarity is key to achieving this, that’s why in order to unite the progressive vote in Camden, the Greens have stepped aside in the two wards the CPA is contesting, and we have not stood in wards where there is a Green candidate,” he told the Star.

The CPA was only founded last year, in large part as an outgrowth of the energy and hope Feinstein’s 2024 campaign had generated locally.

Its activists include Communists as well as former Labour members and campaigners who were either blocked or made to feel unwelcome in the party under Starmer’s leadership.

It sees itself as a community-based political party focused on building social power in Camden, including through fostering connections among residents, organisations, campaigns and community groups.

The CPA manifesto is clear — no cuts; build council homes for people, not profit; end the right to buy; divest from regimes which abuse human rights; universal free school meals and free food for elderly residents; reverse school cuts; reopen youth clubs and more — some at least, policies which the Labour Party once championed in a borough long under the thumb of the party’s right wing.

CPA co-chairs Susan Michie and Ranjit Singh set out the political logic behind the agreement, telling the Star: “There is a progressive majority in Camden that rejects the politics of hate whether that is coming from the Reform party or the Reform-lite politics of Labour.  

“We as the Camden People’s Alliance have worked and campaigned alongside the Green Party over the past two years on many issues and we have built up a good rapport and trust.

“The idea of an alliance in the local elections naturally progressed out of this. We share a common belief that change is necessary and we can make Camden a better place by working together and that has naturally evolved into an electoral alliance at the upcoming elections.

“This will unite the progressive vote. It gives us hope that a united left can and will provide a solid foundation to take forward socialist policies. Our experience suggests that this would be a great model for other local areas, as a broad progressive electoral alliance is essential for defeating the racist, dangerous Reform Party.”

Cllr Lorna Jane Russell, the only Green Party councillor on the outgoing council and a former parliamentary candidate in the borough, explained the pact from the Green perspective: “Following the 2024 election, where the combined Green and socialist independent vote share was almost 30 per cent, we decided to work together to maximise the chances of electing left-wing progressive voices onto Camden Council who would properly challenge and scrutinise the Labour administration.

“As a result, Camden Green Party are standing down in two wards where the Camden People’s Alliance are running in the May local elections, while the Camden People’s Alliance have agreed not to run candidates in the other 18 wards where the Green Party will field a full slate.

“We believe this co-operative approach gives us the strongest possible chance of winning seats across the borough. By avoiding competition and focusing our efforts where each of us is best-placed to succeed, we can turn our combined vote share into real representation.

“At a time when residents are facing rising costs, a housing crisis, and deep concern about global injustices, it has never been more important for progressive voices to work together. This agreement shows what can be achieved when we put people before party and prioritise outcomes over division,” she told the Star.

CPA candidates are up for the fight. Sarah Friday, standing in St Pancras/Somers Town, says: “The Labour Party blocked St Pancras & Somers Town ward from choosing councillors that speak up for them — instead installing Sir Keir Starmer’s cronies. May 7 is our chance to change that.”

And Raquib Islam adds: “Somers Town may not have much, but it gives such a lot through its people, resilience, and strong sense of community.

“Labour has run St Pancras & Somers Town into the ground; it’s almost a forgotten ward where residents get overlooked. We are here to change that.”

Shezan Renny, fighting King’s Cross ward, says that “there are two things on the ballot paper — housing repairs and Palestine. Labour has totally failed at both.”

The point is elaborated by Joel Anderson, another King’s Cross candidate: “The last people who might have given Starmer a chance gave up in 2024.

“The moment he said Israel had the right to commit war crimes in cutting off power and water to Gaza was crucial. But it’s not just international issues which Labour are failing on; Labour’s Camden council has failed to deliver for local people and most people in Camden simply don’t believe any of their promises anymore,” he says.

The Greens have issued a leaflet in both wards declaring their support for the CPA candidates, hopefully allowing them to share in the Greens’ soaring popularity of late as well as the fruits of their own campaigning.

In today’s fragmented left, such green-socialists alliances have to be a large part of the electoral strategy. Keep an eye on Camden as the results roll after Thursday.