Tag Archives: zack polanski

Chris Bowers

Our role is to keep the fire of compassion and decency glowing amid the anger and hate

By Chris Bowers | Mon 27th October 2025 - 11:27 am

I listened to a podcast interview with Zack Polanski this week, the News Agents one. I had no preconceived ideas – I’d heard him speak before, but this was my first time listening to an in-depth interview with him as Green Party leader. And I was so impressed as to be worried.

One of the biggest difficulties we have as a party is getting the public to understand what we exist for. First-past-the-post (FPTP) has given us the popular perception of a half-way house between Labour and Conservatives – politically useful but not something I was ever comfortable with. Now that Reform is threatening to smash the main party duopoly, and there are rumblings to the left of Labour, the need for us to present a vision of Liberalism that the electorate can grasp – and identify with if they’re on our wavelength – is paramount.

So to hear Polanski speak like a coherent and credible Liberal was both uplifting and worrying. I know he used to be a Lib Dem, and while he claims to have felt more comfortable with the Greens once he got to know them, he has to say that to have credibility within his new party. So it’s perhaps no surprise that his broad pitch is generally Liberal, and as a very fluent and convincing speaker, much of what he said was music to this Liberal’s ears.

My worry about him was that he might be taking our clothes, but the more I think about this, the less there is to worry about than I first thought.

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Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged and | 12 Comments
Simon McGrath

Zack Polanski’s first email as Green Leader: not a word about  Climate Change

By Simon McGrath | Thu 4th September 2025 - 2:58 pm

I’ve known Zack since his days as a Liberal Democrat, so I was curious  to read the email he sent out after he was elected leader and how he would present himself in his new role. The email he sent out (text below) was certainly polished. But it focused on bills, childcare, public ownership of water, and taking on Reform. All important issues, but none of them are why people join the Greens.  It was remarkable for what it left out: not a single mention of the environment or climate change – the very issues the Green Party exists to champion.

Looking at his statement when he was elected, climate and environment barely feature and his Twitter feed tells the same story: the Green Party has chosen a leader who doesn’t seem especially interested in green issues.

This raises an obvious question for long-standing Green members and supporters. If the Green Party leader won’t put climate and environment front and centre, then what is the Party’s reason for existing? It starts to look less like an environmental movement and more like another version of  ‘Your Party’ – right down to the “In solidarity” sign-off.

For those who care passionately about the climate, there is a political home: the Liberal Democrats. Ed Davey has made environmental action a central priority, from investing in renewable energy to protecting nature. The party’s record – and its leader’s repeated focus on these issues – makes clear that tackling the climate crisis is not an afterthought but a core mission.

Those who want a Party which  treats the environment as  a core priority  won’t find it in Zack Polanski’s Greens. They will in Liberal Democrats.

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Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged , and | 14 Comments
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