Board of Deputies of British Jews declares the Green Party 'racist' over anti-Zionist resolution

Board of Deputies declares the Greens a racist party

The Board of Deputies of British Jews — the largest Jewish organisation in the United Kingdom — has officially declared the Green Party of England and Wales a racist organisation. The decision came in response to the 'Zionism is racism' resolution adopted at the party's conference earlier in October. Board president Phil Rosenberg said that the vote ended with a count of 118 votes to one, BBC News reports. The Board's resolution calls on other parties not to enter into coalition agreements with the Greens at local or national level unless their local leadership has rejected the policy and committed to repealing it — otherwise, the document says, this would amount to 'a lack of seriousness about antisemitism'.

The Greens' position and the content of the resolution

The resolution adopted by party members defines Zionism as an ideology that supports an 'ethno-nationalist Jewish state in historic Palestine to the detriment of and/or for the purpose of domination over the non-Jewish population'. A Green Party spokesperson said that the party does not discriminate against people with Zionist views and rejected the Board of Deputies' characterisation of the resolution and the party. In his words, the Board's decision 'will not stop us from speaking about the genocide in Gaza and pushing for tougher sanctions against the Israeli government and its leaders'; Israel has repeatedly denied that its actions in Gaza constitute genocide. The resolution was criticised by Jewish organisations, the four Green MPs, two former party leaders and opposition parties. The Board of Deputies and the Jewish Leadership Council said in a joint statement that Zionism is 'anti-racism, creating a refuge for Jews in their ancient homeland after millennia of persecution outside it'.

Polanski will not repeal the resolution

Green Party leader Zack Polanski, himself Jewish, did not take part in the vote on the resolution, as he had left the conference early to campaign in the Holborn and St Pancras by-election. He said on BBC's Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg that although he would like to make amendments, he will not repeal the resolution — it will remain party policy until 2028. The BBC previously reported that Polanski is experiencing 'the greatest crisis of his leadership so far', and noted that he said he would not have voted for the resolution.

Consequences for coalitions

The Labour Party has already issued an ultimatum to local Green groups with which it is in coalition: disavow the resolution or lose Labour's support. Rosenberg said: 'By adopting an antisemitic platform, the Green Party of England and Wales has become a racist party. We will treat it accordingly', adding that 'no political party has the right to tell Jews that a central part of our identity, rooted in thousands of years of history, faith and peoplehood, is racism', and that the Green leadership must 'take responsibility for repealing this policy'. The Board's decision effectively moves the conflict into a practical plane: existing coalitions between the Greens and Labour at local level are now under threat, and the resolution itself, according to Polanski, will remain in force until 2028 unless it is repealed. It remains unclear whether the Green leader will introduce the promised amendments and how other parties will renegotiate their coalition agreements.

Image source, PA Media