Five London Labour councillors have defected to Zack Polanski Green Party in another blow for Sir Keir Starmer.
Polanski has vowed that he will “bury” Labour at the local elections in 2026 saying that Starmer’s party is “broken.”
Polanski said, “I think they are broken, and I think we’re ready to bury them.”
The Green Party leader welcomed the defections of the Labour councillors, which includes former whip, Iman Ahmadi-Moghaddam, former cabinet member, Harbi Farah, Mary Mitchell, Tony Ethapemi, and Erica Gbajumo.
Earlier this year Councillors Farah, Moghaddam, Ethapemi and Gbajumo were deselected as Labour candidates, a Labour spokesperson said the councillors fell short “below the standards we require of those seeking to represent.”
Mitchell said, “We always knew that being a party of government would put the principles and values of the party to the test, but we’ve watched as on every issue this Government goes further away from the founding Labour Party principles of democracy, social justice and equality.
We have a huge amount of respect for many of our hard-working Labour colleagues and party members in Brent, but we don’t feel that the party represents the values that we hold any longer.
The Green Party membership is soaring which has risen from 70,000 to over 180,000 in September.
Polanski said, “What I’m really concentrating and focused on, actually, is winning Green councils and Green MPs for the very first time, rather than defectors.
So defectors are very welcome.
“But also I’m absolutely confident that we now have a platform, both nationally and certainly in London, where we can and will win seats starting from scratch in some of these areas.
A London Labour spokesperson said: “The Labour Party operates rigorous and transparent selection processes and maintains the highest standards for its candidates.
“Mr Polanski’s approach suggests a far lower bar for entry, raising serious questions about the level of scrutiny and judgment applied in the Green Party.”
They added: “We look forward to the 2026 local elections, where we will stand on a proud record of delivery and on our work hand in hand with a Labour mayor and a Labour national government to deliver for the people of Brent.
Leave a Comment