It’s not every day that Jeremy Corbyn and some of his closest comrades are described as “the right” in a political argument. But I first heard them given that potentially lethal label – for socialists, at least – shortly after arriving at Your Party’s acrimonious founding conference in Liverpool last Sunday.

The young man who used the words did not seem to be one of the hardbitten leftwing fanatics who had taken over the party, according to most of the press. He was attending his first political conference and enjoying it immensely. Which faction did he think was ahead, I asked, in the weekend’s maze of votes and debates? “Not the Corbynists,” he said with a grin. “But us – the left!”

Ever since its chaotic launch in July, Your Party has been seen by many voters and journalists – when they have noticed it at all – as a step-by-step demonstration of the futility of leftwing politics. Through ideological disagreements, disorganisation and delays, domineering personalities and disputes over leadership structure, management of funds and membership data, Your Party has seemingly squandered the opportunity offered by Labour’s rightward shift and record unpopularity. Instead, Zack Polanski’s radicalised Green party has become the preferred vehicle for many leftwing voters, thinkers and activists. Meanwhile, Your Party has been marked, by both enemies and disillusioned potential supporters, for either a quick or lingering death. From this perspective, the Liverpool conference’s onstage rows,

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