Zack Polanski’s Green Party is facing a growing backlash over proposals to remove Tasers and pepper spray from police officers, end policing in schools and potentially close prisons.
The measures are among a series of ideas being considered as part of the party’s formal policy process ahead of its conference in Brighton in October, according to documents seen by The Times.
Other proposals reportedly include scrapping the Government’s Prevent counter-terrorism programme, placing further restrictions on policing powers and closing prisons.
The proposals would mark a dramatic shift in the Green Party’s approach to policing, crime and national security if adopted.
Chris Philp, the shadow home secretary, branded the ideas the party’s “latest madness”.
“The Greens care more about appeasing the anti-police far-left mob than supporting the police and catching criminals,” he said.
“It’s clear they are on the side of lawbreakers, not the law-abiding majority.
“The Green Party have shown themselves to be a disgrace and a danger to the public. They are certainly no longer the harmless badger and whale-loving party they were in the past.”
He added: “These plans would make it harder for the police to stop dangerous criminals and to protect the public from potential future terrorist attacks.”
Polanski, who has sought to reposition the Greens as a serious political force, rejected the suggestion that the measures represented settled party policy.
“In the Green Party, any member can propose a policy. It’s in our constitution, and members decide whether to debate it.
“So when the media presents that as the Green Party ‘proposing’ a policy, they’re misleading you. Worth asking why the billionaire press constantly attacks us.”
The party said the motions were still at an early drafting stage and that their wording had not been finalised.
More than 150 motions have been submitted ahead of the October conference, making it unlikely that all will reach the floor for debate.
A Green Party spokesman said: “Conference is still weeks away and members have only just begun submitting motions.
“There is a prioritisation process, and not every motion submitted will be debated. Only motions passed by conference become Green Party policy.”
The distinction is politically important. A proposal submitted by an individual member does not necessarily represent the position of the leadership or the wider party.
But the emergence of the motions nonetheless provides an insight into the issues likely to generate pressure from the Greens’ grassroots as Polanski attempts to build the party beyond its traditional environmental base.
Any attempt to remove police access to Tasers and incapacitant spray, dismantle Prevent or reduce the use of prisons would put the Greens on a collision course with the Government and police leaders over public protection.
For Polanski, the immediate challenge is therefore twofold: maintaining the party’s radical appeal to its membership while convincing a wider electorate that the Greens can be trusted with the machinery of government.
Leave a Comment