Revolutionaries want to build a socialist party that can lead the working class to victory over capitalism. But debate ranges over precisely this question. Reformists and Stalinists agree on need for a party, but their vision is worlds away from a truly revolutionary and democratic organisation. On the other hand, most anarchists and liberals argue that there is an inherent contradiction between leadership and democracy in a socialist party. This talk will explore the thorny question of how a revolutionary party can avoid the bureaucratic conservatism of reformist and Stalinist parties and generate a genuine revolutionary movement for socialism.