Former Green leader Lucas says Polanski failed to lead on Zionism motion

Lucas told BBC Newsnight Polanski should have attended and voted on the motion, which was passed at the party conference in Brighton.

By Felo News Desk · Published Fri, 09 Oct 2026 07:18:25 GMT

Caroline Lucas, the former leader of the Green Party, said on BBC Newsnight that current leader Zack Polanski "failed to show leadership" by missing the debate on a motion that defines Zionism as a form of racism, according to the BBC.

What happened

The Green Party’s annual conference in Brighton voted on a motion that describes Zionism as an "ethnonationalist Jewish state" and calls for a single democratic Palestinian state across historic Palestine. The motion was passed on Sunday. Polanski left the conference early to campaign in the Holborn and St Pancras by‑election and did not vote on the motion, according to the BBC.

What the reports add

BBC reporting notes that Lucas, who voted against the motion, said Polanski should have been present and cast a vote. She called the motion "dangerous" and "divisive". The Independent adds that Prime Minister Andy Burnham described the motion as "completely wrong" and urged Polanski to reverse it, saying it shows "terrible judgement" by the Greens. Burnham also said all UK parties should support a two‑state solution.

What was said

Caroline Lucas told Newsnight, "should have been there and he should have voted" and added, "I would have hoped [Polanski] would have been a very strong critic of this motion." (BBC)

Andy Burnham said the motion "shouldn't be supported in any way, shape or form" and called it "completely wrong", urging Polanski to reverse it. (The Independent)

How it came about

The motion was debated after Polanski announced his anti‑Zionist stance earlier in the month (green-party-anti-zionist-debate). The party’s leadership had recently changed, with Steph Hodgins‑May elected deputy leader on 3 October (steph-hodgins-may-deputy-leader) following Larissa Waters’ resignation (larissa-waters-resignation). Polanski’s campaign in the Holborn and St Pancras by‑election, a seat long held by Labour, was highlighted in a September 25 article (green-party-holborn-st-pancras-by-election), where he vowed to upset the result.

Key facts

Caroline Lucas said Zack Polanski should have attended and voted on the Zionism motion (bbc.co.uk)
The Green Party conference in Brighton passed a motion defining Zionism as an ethnonationalist Jewish state (bbc.co.uk)
Polanski left the conference early to campaign in the Holborn and St Pancras by‑election and did not vote on the motion (bbc.co.uk)
Prime Minister Andy Burnham called the motion "completely wrong" and urged Polanski to reverse it (independent.co.uk)