A subscriber expressed difficulty in terminating their membership with the new political party initiated by Jeremy Corbyn and Zarah Sultana.
After joining Your Party during its chaotic inception, I am now unable to cancel my membership. My emails go unanswered, and my local party branch claims they are unable to assist me.
The website mandates the creation of a new account and another payment commitment just to proceed with any cancellation.
Attempts to stop payments through my Amex card failed, as a £5 charge was processed again this month. Even trying to get a refund through my card issuer proved unsuccessful. It’s infuriating that they continue to withdraw funds from my account amid such disorganization.
Both my husband and I, who are of Asian descent, have faced increased racism this year. We saw Your Party as a potential source of positive change, but it quickly turned into a source of disappointment and frustration.
Name and address withheld
“A party that belongs to you,” is the slogan of Your Party, founded by Jeremy Corbyn, Zarah Sultana, and four independent MPs to address what they describe as a corrupt political system.
Similar frustrations have been voiced by others who have tried unsuccessfully to cancel their subscriptions following months of public disputes among the founders. These individuals became members when Sultana opened a separate membership site in September, which differed from the main party website, and began accepting membership fees.
MOU Operations, a company established to manage the setup of Your Party, was in charge of handling these funds. Corbyn later disavowed the portal as unauthorized, while Sultana argued that she had to intervene to “protect grassroots participation.” By that time, over 20,000 people had registered. Corbyn and the other initial MPs then introduced another membership site a week later.
The two websites appear to be disconnected. Disappointed members find they cannot cancel through the new, official website, which doesn’t have access to their financial information or data, and receive no replies from the original site. Furthermore, they had to agree to recurring payments via their bank cards, which do not offer the same consumer protections as direct debits and are more difficult to cancel.
In October, members were advised by email to seek refunds through MOU; shortly after, the directors of MOU resigned, stating that the responsibility for handling donations and member information was unexpectedly placed upon them. Sultana, now the sole director, claimed responsibility for about £500,000 collected through her site and stated that all subscriptions from that portal had been canceled.
“I regret that your reader has encountered difficulties in contacting us, and I assure them that they will receive a prompt, full refund if they reach out to herewego@yourparty-membership.uk,” Sultana remarked.
A spokesperson for Your Party commented, “The unauthorized portal has unfortunately led to significant issues for individual members and for Your Party itself. We were unaware of the portal and lament its creation. We acknowledge the confusion and distress it has caused many of our members and supporters. Although MOU Operations Ltd is handling refunds, we are offering those who joined via Zarah’s portal three months of free membership as compensation.”
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