Greens could join pact with Labour to stop Farage – but only if Starmer is replaced as leader, Polanski says
Zack Polanski says the Green Party is willing to consider joining an election deal with Labor to stop Nigel Farage’s UK Reform but will not do so as long as Sir Keir Starmer is leader.
As his party soars in opinion polls, there is widespread speculation that the Greens may work with Labor to take on Reform at local elections in May; but leader Polanski insisted that his priority was now “to replace Labour, not to work with them”.
Mr Polanski said he was pressed on whether he would be open to a deal Independent He said he would consider an alliance with Labor if former deputy prime minister Angela Rayner or Manchester mayor Andy Burnham became leader, but such a deal was currently out of the question.
“I don’t see a scenario where I would want to work with the Labor Party led by Keir Starmer under any circumstances,” he said.
“I think working with Keir Starmer would make it even worse. [version of] Nigel Farage is on his way.”
At a time when the Prime Minister’s position is under scrutiny due to widespread speculation about attempts to replace him, Polanski pointed to potential leaders with whom he would work while excluding others.
He said: “I think it would be easier to work with someone like this [Former deputy prime minister] Angela Rayner, but it’s not for me to decide whether she’s lost the public’s trust or not.
“I think Angela Rayner has been tainted by her previous role in a Labor government where our children were pushed into poverty,” Mr. Polanski said.
He argued that the latest U-turn to end the two-child benefit cap was “18 months too late” and that “Labour was forced out” in part by the Greens’ political success rather than pressure from the likes of Ms Rayner.
He continued: “Andy Burnham is probably one of the outliers, but I can’t see a scenario where he could return to parliament while we have the control ‘frenzy’ of a Labor government.”
He accused Green Party leader Sir Keir of being “the first Labor leader in history to seek to destroy his own progressive coalition” by “purging” socialists from his party.
“I think more and more people are realizing that home is in the Green Party. That’s why I say we’re not here to be disappointed by Labour, or worried by Labour. We’re here to replace Labour.”
He added: “I think the Green Party can definitely lead the left and as leader of the Green Party I will do my part in that.”
Mr Polanski also made harsh criticisms of Wes Streeting, two of the favorites to replace Sir Keir, and Shabana Mahmood, who recently caught the fancy of Sir Tony Blair.
“Shabana Mahmood is someone who is actively fueling the anti-immigrant rhetoric that started with Reform but appears to have been finished by this Labor Party,” he said.
He highlighted issues such as the banning of Palestine Action and the “unconscionable” treatment of supporters of the group who were on hunger strike in prison while awaiting trial for allegations of forced trespass or criminal damage.
Meanwhile, the doctors’ salary dispute also confirmed Polanski’s dislike of the health minister.
“HE [Wes Streeting] shows his true face. Multimillionaires or billionaires, or where do they take the fight over taxation of wealth? No, they’re taking them to doctors who have had real cuts over the last 17 years.
“Not only did Streeting fail to negotiate with them fairly and transparently, but he also resorted to public name-calling. This is not someone I could imagine working with.”
Mr. Polanski spoke Independent When, after a year, he dramatically won the leadership of his party from the “populist left” and then saw them gain the support of former Labor voters.
The party has seen a significant increase in support since Mr. Polanski’s election; An opinion poll is as follows: Find Now While the Greens were neck and neck with Labor in October, this week another put them one point ahead. Last month, five Labor councilors from London’s Brent Council announced they would defect to the Greens.
The interview also saw him admitting that he enjoyed the fact that leading Labor figures were so afraid of him that they publicly attacked him, suggesting that this was evidence that the Greens had become a major political force in the UK under his leadership and that there was a new focus on “economic justice”.
Videos of the attack came from Mr Streeting and home secretary Mike Tapp.
He said: “We also have Chancellor Rachel Reeves in the biggest speech of the year, using that moment to make cheap jokes at my expense. “And the nice thing about all this is that it backfires every time.
“When people realize how unsuccessful they are, it is counterproductive for them. I say ‘launch the attacks in 2026’ because we are ready for them and we are getting stronger.”
