Polanski Vows No One Will Be "Made Unwelcome" as Green Party Faces Backlash Over Zionism Motion

Green Party leader Zack Polanski has broken his silence over a controversial conference vote that declared Zionism a form of racism, insisting that no member should ever feel excluded from the party on the basis of their faith or community affiliation.

In his first public remarks since the motion passed on Sunday, Polanski said he took seriously his duty to ensure everyone felt safe and welcome within the Green Party. He did not grant interviews on Monday, instead releasing a lengthy written statement in which he pledged to oppose any attempt to shut people out because of the religious or communal group to which they belong.

The Green leader, who is himself Jewish, drew a firm distinction between antisemitism and criticism of the Israeli state, arguing the two must always remain "completely distinct" from one another.

The motion at the centre of the row was tabled by a group of activists at the party's conference in Brighton and carried by 1,022 votes to 813. It characterises Zionism as an ideology that supports what it calls "an ethnonationalist Jewish state" and expresses support for a "single democratic Palestinian state in all of historic Palestine."

The text further claims that the "real, material, manifestation of Zionism" has been the "historic and ongoing dehumanisation, displacement, dispossession, disenfranchisement and destruction of Palestinians."

Polanski abstained from the vote, and four of the party's five MPs voted against the measure, underscoring the rift between the leadership and the party's recently expanded membership base. The result has laid bare internal tensions between the newcomer-dominated grassroots and the parliamentarians elected at the last general election.

The fallout has been swift and wide-ranging. More than a dozen Labour MPs wrote to the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) on Monday, saying the motion raised "serious questions" about whether Jewish members could participate freely and equally in the Green Party. The letter, coordinated by former Home Office minister Mike Tapp, also flagged amendments designed to protect Jewish members who attend Zionist synagogues that were voted down at the conference.

In their correspondence to the watchdog, the MPs warned that members' religious and communal ties could expose them to complaints or disciplinary action, questioning whether the party could guarantee equal treatment under equality law. The EHRC, which regulates equality legislation in Great Britain and previously identified failings in how the Labour Party handled antisemitism, confirmed it would examine each complaint carefully but has not opened a formal investigation at this stage. It noted that political parties, like all duty-bearers, are required to comply with the Equality Act 2010 and to take steps to prevent discrimination.

Separately, nine Labour MPs referred the Green Party to Sussex Police, asking the force to investigate whether alleged "possible antisemitic offences" at the conference warrant a criminal inquiry. Neither Sussex Police nor the Green Party has commented on that referral.

The controversy has also drawn in international bodies. The European Green Party, the umbrella organisation to which the Green Party of England and Wales belongs, issued a statement on Monday saying it wanted to "unequivocally distance" itself from the motion. The grouping said it would "immediately demand clarity" from the party's leadership about how it intends to safeguard Jewish people and uphold the principle of self-determination.

Israel's foreign ministry responded by barring Polanski from entering the country, while several Jewish organisations have described the motion as an attack on the Jewish community. The chair of Jewish Greens has said she could consider leaving the party as a result of the vote.

Green MP Ellie Chowns told BBC Radio 4's PM programme she was "deeply saddened" that the motion had become official party policy, though she rejected the suggestion that it was antisemitic. She described it as rooted in "principled opposition to the actions of the Israeli government."

Chowns also called for a review of how the party makes policy, pointing out that fewer than one percent of the party's more than 200,000 members took part in the ballot. Her intervention highlights a broader debate within the Greens about internal democracy and the legitimacy of conference decisions taken by a small fraction of the membership.

Polanski's statement sought to strike a careful balance, reaffirming his commitment to the party's "deeply held values of compassion, fairness and equality for all" while refusing to endorse exclusion on communal or religious grounds.

The episode represents one of the most serious tests of Polanski's leadership since he took the helm of a party enjoying a surge in membership. It places him between an activist base determined to take a strong line on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and MPs, Jewish members and external allies alarmed by the language of the motion.

With the EHRC assessing complaints, police referrals pending and the European Greens pressing for answers, the pressure on the Green leadership appears unlikely to ease in the days ahead. How Polanski reconciles the demands of his expanded membership with the concerns of Jewish members and the wider public may shape both his leadership and the party's standing for some time to come.