Jim O’Boyle, the Coventry City Council cabinet member who lost his St Michael’s ward seat in last week’s historic local elections, has called Coventry South MP Zarah Sultana a “squatter” in her own constituency and announced his intention to seek Labour’s nomination for the seat at the next general election.
O’Boyle – who served as cabinet member for business, regeneration and climate change and was one of the most recognisable figures on Coventry City Council – lost his seat in St Michael’s ward, as we reported in our full Coventry election results piece. Green Party candidate Matt Greenhalgh took the third seat in the ward alongside two Labour candidates, ending O’Boyle’s council career.
Speaking after his defeat, O’Boyle turned his attention firmly to Westminster. “We had an elected Labour MP in 2024 who quickly left the Labour Party, and I think she’s sitting there, squatting there, if you don’t mind me saying,” he said. “And I will let it be known today – I want to put the name forward for that seat. But ultimately, there’s processes to go through on that, it’s for the party to make that available as and when.”
Who Zarah Sultana is – and why she still holds the seat
Sultana was elected as the Labour MP for Coventry South in 2019 and re-elected in 2024. She was stripped of the Labour whip months after the 2024 general election for backing a parliamentary move to scrap the two-child benefit cap. She subsequently left the Labour Party in 2025 and joined forces with former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn to form Your Party.
Sultana retains her Coventry South seat as an independent MP. Labour subsequently agreed to scrap the two-child benefit cap from April – the policy she had the whip removed for supporting.
The legal backdrop to Sultana’s week is also significant. As we reported in our Katie Hopkins legal apology piece, Hopkins was legally required this week to publish and pin a formal apology on X admitting she had falsely claimed Sultana “encourages and incites violence and is friends with terrorists” – a statement Sultana’s solicitors at Bindmans Media and Information Law required Hopkins to pin to her profile for a minimum of 24 hours. Sultana’s response to Hopkins misspelling her name in the apology – “By the way, for future reference it’s Z-A-R-A-H” – generated significant online attention.
Sultana has been approached for a response to O’Boyle’s comments.
O’Boyle’s track record – and his previous attempts at Westminster
This is not the first time O’Boyle has sought a Labour nomination for a Coventry parliamentary seat. He previously sought the Labour nomination for the Coventry North East constituency but lost out to Mary Creagh, who was subsequently elected as its MP in 2024.
His credentials for seeking the Coventry South nomination are substantial. As cabinet member for business, regeneration and climate change, he oversaw several of Coventry’s flagship development projects, including the Very Light Rail tram development, the City Centre South regeneration and plans for a Gigafactory at Coventry Airport. These are significant projects that define the city’s economic direction over the coming decade – and O’Boyle’s involvement in them gives him a credible argument about his contribution to Coventry’s future.
The loss of his council seat, however, comes at a difficult moment. As we reported in our results article, O’Boyle was one of the most prominent casualties of an election night that left Labour with only 24 of 54 seats on Coventry City Council – losing its majority for the first time since 2010, as we covered in our full Coventry results piece.
The ‘squatter’ claim – and what it misses
The legal and constitutional position is that Sultana is a legitimately elected MP representing a constituency she won at a general election. She did not vacate the seat when she lost the Labour whip or when she joined Your Party. British constitutional convention is that MPs represent their constituencies rather than their parties – a principle that applies equally to Sultana as it does to any other independent or minor party MP.
The term “squatter” is colourful and will generate headlines. It does not reflect the legal or democratic reality: Sultana was elected by the voters of Coventry South and serves them as their MP regardless of her party affiliation. Whether the voters of Coventry South agree with O’Boyle’s assessment will, in due course, be settled at a general election.
What comes next
O’Boyle has made his ambition clear. The formal process for Labour’s candidate selection in Coventry South would begin when a general election is called or becomes imminent. At that point, local Labour members and the national party machinery would decide who the candidate is through an open selection process.
The political context is significant. Labour is now without a majority on Coventry City Council for the first time in 16 years, and is simultaneously navigating a national leadership crisis following Wes Streeting’s resignation from the cabinet and the formal beginning of what looks likely to be a Labour leadership contest – as we reported in our Streeting resignation piece. How that national picture resolves will shape the context for any Coventry South candidate selection.
