Observations on the far left

"Embarrassment just doesn't cover it," was Tommy Sheridan's comment on his mother's rendition of "The Impossible Dream" at the launch of his new party, Solidarity. He might equally have been referring to the vitriolic split that has torn the Scottish Socialist Party in two.

Sheridan made headlines over the summer when he won a defamation case against the News of the World over lurid allegations about his private life. Off the back of that, and because of the lack of support from erstwhile comrades, he left the party he helped found.

The effects are likely to be felt well beyond the fractious far left. Many believe that the SSP will now lose most or all of its six seats in the Scottish Parliament in the elections next May, and since Scotland's current Labour-Lib Dem coalition has only a five-seat majority, that could open the way for the Scottish National Party to win power or for the Greens to be asked to join a coalition.

Such possibilities, however, continue to be upstaged by the remarkable intensity of this storm in a far-left teacup. "Liar" is an almost routine term of abuse. We have also heard "scabs" (Sheridan on his opponents), "another Jeffrey Archer" (various on Sheridan) and most hurtful - given the Trotskyist background of many involved - "Stalinist" (everybody about everybody else).

It came to a head when, on consecutive days, both sides held rallies in the same hall. First was the (official) SSP, whose leaders are facing down the claim that the only people upset about Sheridan winning his court case were Rupert Murdoch and themselves - a project not helped by the appearance of "Never Forget, Never Forgive" T-shirts. Next day marked the "historic" launch of Solidarity, possibly the only founding conference in history featuring the leader's mother doing her Matt Monro impression.

Meanwhile in the Scottish Parliament, the warring parties need to reach some form of accommodation. Speaking rights in the parliament are based on party strength - and two separate parties of four (SSP) and two (Solidarity) don't reach an important threshold. Negotiations are under way to ensure they are treated as a "Socialist Group".

And the political difference between the two parties? One is in favour of an independent, socialist Scotland. And so is the other. Both claim to be the genuine political alternative, and are about to embark on a fierce electoral battle, principally with each other. Things can only get bitter.

Stephen Low is a journalist with BBC Scotland and producer of The Party's Over? The rise and fracture of the SSP. Listen at www.bbc.co.uk/scotland/radioscotland

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