What a Stop the War fringe tells us about Labour foreign policy

This year’s Labour conference has proved a topsy turvy affair for the Parliamentary Labour party. Moderates feel as though they have switched places with the far-left protesters that usually lurk on the outskirts of conference. As Ben Bradshaw put it, for the first time he found himself in the protests outside (as part of the anti-Brexit march) while the usual placard-carrying socialists dominated proceedings in the hall.

Nowhere was this new order more apparent than at last night’s Stop the War event. Two frontbenchers – Diane Abbott and Richard Burgon – turned up at the anti-war group’s fringe event. Andrew Murray – Corbyn’s close ally and former campaign strategist – also spoke. He talked with excitement about the first proper anti-war government that would soon be in power at the next election:

‘We are celebrating have an anti-war leader as leader of the Labour party. We’re now within sight of a Labour government which will be an anti-war government.