Zarah Sultana has refused to enter Jeremy Corbyn’s new party conference, staging a photo-op outside as she accused organisers of conducting a “witch hunt” against socialists. The co-founder’s extraordinary boycott has exposed a civil war tearing through the fledgling movement on its opening day, as Mr Corbyn took to the main stage this morning to claim the party was “united”.

Ms Sultana met members outside the Liverpool conference centre after it emerged leaders from the Socialist Workers Party had been expelled from the gathering. A spokesperson for Ms Sultana said: “Zarah met members outside the conference and condemned the recent expulsions. This witch hunt is indefensible. We must build a party that welcomes all socialists. She will not be entering the conference hall today.”

Zarah Sultana said she was “disappointed” people had been expelled from Your Party on the eve of its founding conference.

The former Labour MP said: “I’m disappointed to see on the morning of our founding conference, people who have travelled from all over the country, spent a lot of money on their train fare, on hotels, on being able to participate in this conference, being told that they have been expelled.

“That is a culture that is reminiscent of the Labour Party, how there were witch hunts on the eve of conference, how members were treated with contempt.

“We are here to build a democratic party that unites all of the left, all socialists, so they can find their political home in Your Party.

“So what we have seen this morning has been disappointing and it should be reversed.”

The dramatic snub came just hours after Mr Corbyn refused to call Ms Sultana a “friend” in a national TV interview.

Opening the conference on the main stage, he told attendees the group had assembled “because division and disunity will not serve the interests of the people that we want to represent”.

But his call for unity was immediately undermined by his co-founder’s boycott and the chaos that had erupted the night before.

Four hecklers were thrown out of a pre-conference rally, with activists outside branding Mr Corbyn as “right-wing” and accusing him of betraying Ms Sultana.

The Express attended the event, billed as ‘An Evening of Culture & Politics’ in central Liverpool, which quickly descended into a shouting match as black-clad security guards hauled out troublemakers.

Some in the crowd yelled “let them stay”, while others were heard muttering: “There’s always nutters.”

In his opening speech, Mr Corbyn warned of rising inequality and bemoaned the “voracious appetite of mining, fossil fuel companies and so much else, to destroy the natural world.”

He accused the Government of being “complicit” in “genocide” in Gaza. Mr Corbyn has raised the issue repeatedly in Parliament, alongside members of the Independent Alliance of MPs, and called for arms sales to Israel to be halted.

The conference kicked off on Saturday with attendees selected through a randomised lottery system dubbed “sortition” to decide who could enter.

Members will vote on the party’s name, founding documents and platform. Potential names include Your Party, Our Party, For the Many, and Popular Alliance.