How the Co-op Party has become a quietly radical driving force behind Labour

All eyes will be on Sir Keir Starmer’s summit in the City of London today, with the event promising to bring billions of pounds of investment into the UK.

- ARCHIE MITCHELL

The gathering, which will feature bosses of some of the world’s biggest firms including GSK and Blackrock, is seen as the culmination of years of work by the PM and chancellor Rachel Reeves to win back the trust of business.

But 200 miles away from the crucial financial hub, with a little less glitz and glamour, a conference unfolded this weekend that perhaps says more about Labour’s approach to business, and where power lies in the party.

In Manchester, at Co-op HQ, Angela Rayner, Jonathan Reynolds and Andy Burnham all addressed members of the little-known political party that sits at the heart of much of Labour’s plans for power.

The Independent looks at what the Co-op Party is, and how it is quietly driving the more radical parts of Labour’s agenda.

Founded in 1917, the Co-op Party has had an electoral agreement with Labour for close to a century which sees candidates stand jointly under the Labour and Co-operative Party banner. Its MPs, metro mayors and councillors champion the values of the Co-op movement such as community ownership and control and a fairer distribution of wealth.