More Green party responses
JVL Introduction
The Green party is doing well in facing down the barrage of adverse publicity the media has launched in the wake of its adoption of the Zionism is Racism motion.
Unlike the Labour party from 2017 onwards, it is not capitulating under the pressure. Rather, under its Jewish leader Zack Polanski it is fighting back.
Recognising the criticisms the motion has put the party under, Polanski is not disowning the central tenet of the motion: that Zionism as practiced today is genocidal, ethnonationalist and racist to the core.
Standing firmly on that premise gives it an incontrovertible moral authority over Andy Burnham’s Labour party which – despite Ed Miliband’s very welcome but limited shift in tone and emphasis – is still deeply complicit in the genocide.
Below is the Guardian report of Polanski’s interview with Laura Kuenssberg, and a link to the video of the interview, followed by Martin Abrams, Green Jewish leader of Lambeth council, explaining how the weaponisation of antisemitism is making Jews less safe.
Zack Polanski says application of Zionism is racist and no state has right to exist
Green leader in England and Wales calls ‘debates about words’ unhelpful and denies recent motion was controversial
Kiran Stacey Policy editor, the Guardian, 18 Oct 2026
Zack Polanski has said Zionism in its current form is racist, that no country has a right to exist, and that the Green party motion on the issue was not controversial.
The leader of the Green party in England and Wales gave an unapologetic interview to the BBC on Sunday two weeks after his party approved a motion equating Zionism with racism.
Polanski did not attend the vote, prompting accusations of a lack of leadership, but he made clear he agreed with the broad thrust of it even if he felt it was unhelpful to have what he called a “debate about semantics”.
Asked by the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg whether he thought Zionism was racist, Polanski said: “I don’t think this is actually controversial.
“What’s controversial is that 75,000 Palestinians have been murdered in the last few years, including more child amputees than ever in modern history. So when you take that to account, the fact that they’re being murdered because they’re Palestinian – that’s very obviously a racist ideology.”
He added: “I think Zionism is racism in the practical application of it. Now the conference had a debate about the motion, about the word. I said I think debates about words are unhelpful, and I still think that.”
Asked whether he believed Israel had a right to exist, Polanski, who is Jewish, said: “I don’t think any state has a right to exist under international law,” adding that the idea of a two-state solution was “for the birds” given Israel’s opposition to it.
He also insisted he had no regrets about the way he had handled the recent controversy, despite criticism from some prominent Jewish Green members, including Vivien Lichtenstein, the chair of the Jewish Greens.
Polanski said: “I’m not sorry at all. Vivien is someone I’ve had respect for and do have respect for, and partly co-founded the Jewish Greens together … Actually, when the Jewish Greens were surveyed about this motion, a majority supported it.”
In response, Lichtenstein later said: “Zack should have joined conference online, listened to the speeches for and against and, crucially, spoken for those amendments he supported, then voted.
“None of that took an inordinate amount of time. There was no excuse for his not participating.”
She also said polling of Jewish greens on the Zionism motion showed they were evenly split, contrary to Polanski’s claims.
Polanski’s defiant interview comes after the most difficult two weeks of his leadership of the party since he took over last September, during which he has endured the fallout from the conference vote and lost the Holborn and St Pancras byelection.
His strategy of shifting his party to the left, focusing on economically populist ideas and leaning into debates on Palestine and Gaza initially paid dividends, with the party jumping from about 10% in the polls to 18% earlier this year.
In recent months, however, the party has tumbled, beset by questions over his tax affairs, a public spat with the police after the Golders Green attack and the recent row over Zionism.
He said on Sunday that he was confident voters would return to his party once they had seen more of Andy Burnham’s leadership of the country. “People more and more will see from Andy Burnham a change in rhetoric, but not a change in action, and know the Green party have been right all along,” he said.
Cllr Martin Abrams: Antisemitism and Weaponisation of Antisemitism Make Jewish People Less Safe
Following the passing of the Zionism is Racism motion at Green Party Conference, there has been intense debate about Zionism, Jewish identity and antisemitism. Much of it has been conducted in good faith, but some has deepened division at a time when our communities need solidarity, understanding and reassurance.
As Lambeth’s first Jewish Council Leader in 40 years and its first-ever Green Leader, these issues are deeply personal. My responsibility is to ensure that Lambeth remains a borough where everyone, regardless of ethnicity, faith, gender, sexuality or background, feels safe, valued and welcome.
I recognise that the motion and some of the commentary on it have caused concern, including among some members of Lambeth’s Jewish community. Zionism means different things to different people and, for many Jews, is understood as a response to persecution that ensures the maintenance of Jewish identity and history. For some people, hearing Zionism described as racism can feel troubling or threatening. Those concerns must be heard and treated with respect.But we must also listen to Palestinians and recognise their right to describe the trauma, pain and grief caused by generations of subjugation, occupation, apartheid and genocide by Israel and to name the ideology that has led to these injustices.
Zionism emerged in the late nineteenth century as a political movement advocating a Jewish national homeland in Palestine. Its history and implementation are inseparable from the displacement, dispossession and ethnic cleansing of Palestinians, the denial of their rights, and systems of occupation and discrimination that continue today.
Judaism and Zionism are not the same. Judaism is an ancient religion, culture and ethnic identity, shared by me and two other members of our Green group of councillors. Many Jewish people are not Zionists, and most Zionists are not Jewish. Criticism of Zionism as a political ideology, or of the Israeli government, is not antisemitic.Our fundamental principle is straightforward: no religious or ethnic group should enjoy greater rights, power or privilege than another. Our commitment must be to equality, justice and universal human rights. There was nothing in the Green Party motion expressing hostility towards Jewish people or threatening their freedom of worship or place in British society, and we would never tolerate anything of that kind.
Jewish people must never be held collectively responsible for the actions of the Israeli government. Criticism of Zionism must never become a pretext for hostility towards Jewish people, institutions or communal life.
But it is also dangerous to suggest that opposing Zionism automatically puts Jewish people at risk. Such discourse promotes the idea that Jewish people are intrinsically linked to Zionism and Israel. The safety and security of Jewish communities is a collective responsibility of all of us and cannot be reduced to one ideology or state. I will not allow antisemitism to be used as a political football. It is racism, it is a scourge, and it must be confronted wherever it appears.
I know this because I have experienced antisemitism myself. I know the fear and damage it causes. Jewish communities across London have faced deeply troubling levels of intimidation and hostility, alongside a wider rise in religiously motivated hate crime.
But weaponising antisemitism or creating a hierarchy of racism for political advantage makes Jewish people less safe. Conflating antisemitism with opposition to Zionism or criticism of the Israeli state undermines the fight against antisemitism. It blurs the distinction between racism directed at Jewish people and legitimate political discourse, making genuine hatred harder to identify and challenge.We have seen too many examples of claims of antisemitism being used to silence those speaking out against the devastation, occupation and genocide in Gaza.
We must oppose antisemitism unequivocally while also speaking out against the suffering of Palestinians, which includes genocide, ethnic cleansing, apartheid and illegal occupation.
There is no contradiction between defending the safety and rights of Jewish people and defending those of Palestinians. Universal human rights require us to do both.
As Leader of Lambeth Council, I want to be clear that Jewish communities are an integral part of our borough’s religious, cultural and social fabric. Jewish residents have the fundamental right to practise their religion, worship freely and participate fully in Lambeth life.
The day after the Conference motion passed, I joined Councillors Alleyne, Kane, Isaacs and Schulkind in writing to the Rabbi and Board of the South London Liberal Synagogue in Streatham to offer reassurance and begin a dialogue. We have also worked with our Voluntary and Community Sector officers to contact Jewish organisations and housing networks, identify additional support, and engage the chairs of our Faiths Together network.
Under my leadership, Lambeth Council will hold a Community Cohesion Event on 11 November to strengthen understanding, challenge prejudice and build solidarity. We are introducing mandatory anti-racism training for every councillor, covering antisemitism, Islamophobia, anti-Black racism and discrimination against Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities. We have also launched a Hate Crime Awareness campaign, with Councillor Kane working with community representatives to strengthen reporting and responses.
These practical steps ensure that our commitment to equality, solidarity and community safety is reflected in our actions.
Those principles also shape our response to the catastrophe in Palestine and the wider region. The genocide against Palestinians, alongside violence inflicted by the Israeli government in Lebanon, Iran and elsewhere, has profound consequences for Lambeth residents with family, friends and roots in those countries. More than 5,000 residents have petitioned the council demanding action. We have a moral responsibility to listen and ensure Lambeth is not complicit in violations of international law.
The Lambeth Green Group therefore intended to bring a motion to October’s Full Council meeting addressing Palestine, the genocide in Gaza, and the responsibilities of the UK Government and Lambeth Council. We welcomed constructive amendments from other parties, including Liberal Democrat proposals to review contracts and investments involving states and entities breaching international law, and positive elements of Labour’s amendments concerning community cohesion.
However, other Labour amendments were unacceptable. They removed references to apartheid and genocide, despite findings by organisations including Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry and the International Association of Genocide Scholars. They also removed calls to halt arms exports and prevent links with the Israeli government, undermining action needed to avoid complicity in grave violations of international law.
We cannot claim to uphold universal human rights while refusing to name injustice or take meaningful action against it.
We ultimately chose not to move the motion after the Liberal Democrats indicated they were likely to vote for Labour’s amendments. This was deeply disappointing, but it will not deter us from pursuing the ethical investment and divestment policies demanded by many Lambeth residents.
We believe every person deserves equal rights, dignity, freedom and security, whether Jewish, Muslim, Christian, Palestinian, Israeli or of any other faith or background.
These words will not resolve every concern or bridge every political disagreement. But we must approach difficult conversations with compassion, honesty and a willingness to listen.
As a Jewish Council Leader, I will always stand firmly against antisemitism and all forms of racism, hate and discrimination. As a Green, I will always stand against racism, colonialism, oppression and injustice in all their forms. And as Leader of Lambeth Council, I will always stand for equality, universal human rights and the safety and dignity of every member of our community.
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