On June 9th 2025, The Red Network publicly split from People Before Profit following a unanimous decision made by their membership at their Annual General Meeting. This is an event that follows a long-term build-up of tension. One of the primary points of disagreement was the Red Network’s disapproval of PBP’s left Government position, which left many of their activists disaffected. There were also other grievances related to differences in strategy between the Reds and the majority perspective of People Before Profit. In recent times, most of these disagreements have centred on how to counter the growing far-right sentiment in Ireland.¹

There was, up until recent months, an honest attempt to argue for minority positions by the Reds. However, these attempts failed to convince a majority, leading the Reds to conduct debates in a manner that we view as destructive and sectarian. One example of this is an article published on February 7, 2025, in which a single party member was blamed for the party’s perceived political decline.² This approach to political disagreement led in part to the Reds’ politics generally becoming more isolated from the broader party membership. This included even those who agreed with the Reds on specific questions. The Red Network then proceeded to lose their two seats on the steering committee. These defeats led to a lack of confidence among the Reds in their ability to win a majority of PBP to their politics. 

Winning a majority

The Horizon editorial committee’s view is that the split is counterproductive. The stated aim of the Red Network is to build a mass working-class party, an objective with which we and most within the party would agree. If that is the aim, however, they must recognise that questions of political and strategic importance must ultimately be decided through a democratic mandate. This is a central pillar of building and maintaining an internal democratic culture. While PBP is not perfect on this question, it is, unlike many others, a space where different ideological perspectives can co-exist. It reflects the reality that the working class is not homogenous in outlook and upholds, in most cases, the will of the membership as the highest authority. On what other basis could you attempt to create a mass working-class party?

Existing within such an organisation necessitates the ability to not only put forward a minority view but also to be willing to accept when your view loses a democratic debate. That is the tenet of “diversity of opinion, unity in action.” The solution to political differences, therefore, is not splitting but continuing to agitate for your point of view in order to convince the majority of the membership. Splitting from a wider organisation has been proven not to be the silver bullet that pushes your politics forward. Instead, it concludes in either; a delay of a similar dynamic forming when your organisation grows and develops differences of opinion; or, in an attempt to counteract this dynamic, the leadership maintains an ideological hegemony via undemocratic measures. This democratic deficit creates a sectarian organisation that is incapable of building a broad working-class party. The countless sects that proliferate the international left illustrate this point clearly.

Justifying the split

Specific points of disagreement raised by the Red Network about People Before Profit are valid. However, it is essential to emphasise that these differences do not, in themselves, justify further dividing the political arm of the workers’ movement. So, how do they justify the split?

The Red Network argues that the reason their politics can’t win a majority within PBP is due to the changing “class composition” of the party. This alleged shift in class composition has led to a “student moralism” and political degradation.

The Red Network deems moralism to be “posturing on social issues”. They call anti-racist work “external to the class struggle”. This approach involves drawing a false opposition between “true” working-class organising and campaigning on social issues. The working class is not a homogeneous block; it is diverse. To say that the working class universally cares about ‘social issues’ secondarily is wrong. It also ignores that those in the working class who are directly on the receiving end of social oppression often possess political consciousness beyond narrow economism. Our goal should be to direct this consciousness away from solely identity politics and towards challenging the capitalist order.

The Red Network’s prioritisation of the economic over the social is in complete opposition to a genuine socialist approach. As Lenin put it, the socialist ideal is to be a “tribune of the people” that “is able to react to every manifestation of tyranny and oppression, no matter where it appears”.³ Abandoning leading roles in combating racism, fighting for trans rights, or environmental justice is tantamount to abandoning the struggle for universal human emancipation.

We agree that recruitment based on “Left Government” agitation results in a party with less clearly defined class politics. However, we cannot attribute this political trend solely to “moralism.” Would we accuse the workers in the estates who turn out to vote for Sinn Féin of being guilty of “moralism?” An unfortunate reality of our current moment is that the majority of the working class views change through a reformist lens. The Red Network’s approach led to their inability to win the argument on the question of “Left Government” among the politically activated workers within People Before Profit. A new, small, and isolated sect will not suddenly win the argument among the working class at large.

Another way forward.

We need a left that recognises there are no shortcuts to winning the working class over to socialist politics.

We need a genuinely democratic mass socialist party. A party that consists of majorities that do not censure or silence opposition and minorities that are willing to accept losing votes and commit to building democratic support for their vision.

For socialists to intervene on a mass level: in unions, in elections, and working-class communities; not just in specific localities but universally across society, we require unity.

The Red Network has unfortunately abandoned this vision in the hope of building its forces independently of the many socialist activists within PBP. We sincerely hope the Reds do better on their own than the last 100 sects.

If you want to get in contact with a a submission or a response to the above statement reach out at [email protected]

1. “Why The Red Network Has Left People Before Profit.” Red Network, (2025). https://rednetwork.net/articles/2025/06/why-the-red-network-has-left-people-before-profit/. ↩︎
2. O’Toole, James. “People Before Profit: What It Was, What It Is, What It Should Be!” Red Network, (2025). https://rednetwork.net/red-theory/2025/02/people-before-profit-what-it-was-what-it-is-what-it-should-be/. ↩︎
3. Lenin, Vladimir I. “What Is to Be Done?” Marxists.Org. https://www.marxists.org/archive/lenin/works/1901/witbd/iii.htm. ↩︎