There have been many articles exposing the membership problems the Conservative Party faces. Daily Mail columnist Peter Oborne penned a piece arguing the Conservatives face an existential crisis. A picture explaining how many Conservative Party members there were under their four most famous leaders (Churchill, Thatcher, Cameron and May) went viral across social media. The figures were stark. Under Churchill and Thatcher, the Conservatives had 3 million and 1 million activists respectively. During Cameron's tenure, that plummeted to 125,000 members.
Recently under May, the figure was worse: 75,000.
"They are doing something right to capture the imaginations of their supporters"
Pro-corbyn group Momentum boasts a membership of 31,000. The Independent reported 35,000 new members joined the Labour Party five days after the 2017 General Election. In June 2016, Labour had 554,000 members. Compared to the Conservatives, they are doing something right to capture the imaginations of their supporters. Many Conservative members feel their party cannot attract those sorts of numbers because there are too few benefits the party can provide them with for £25-a-year.
The Labour activist who came forward to speak to Blasting News about their experience in the current Labour Party speaks volumes about the toxic culture Jeremy Corbyn has created since he became Labour Leader.
One supporter was beaten up for offering to campaign for a moderate candidate. They said a group of activists who wish to control Labour express nothing but hatred towards those with opposing views. Some Momentum activists are engaging in online and verbal abuse. Conservatives may struggle to convince people to sign up for a year's membership because they provide little in return, but why is Labour better at attracting members than the Tories?
Considering the bullying in Momentum has been widely reported by many media outlets, it also begs the question: why would anybody want to join the Labour Party right now?
Labour may offer a cheaper rate of membership than the Tories, but cheaper is not always better. How far can this poisonous environment for Labour activists go before the party cannot attract any new members in the long-term?
The activist who spoke to Blasting News about their experience in Labour is right: all they care about is ultimate control, not the party winning power. If the Tories are not careful, Corbyn will win power by default. Imagine how much influence Momentum will have then...
