Labour asks its councils to scrap coalitions with the Greens over Zionism policy

The Labour leadership has instructed its local councillors to break off any power-sharing arrangements with the Green Party unless local Green representatives explicitly reject a contentious party conference motion defining Zionism as a form of racism. The directive follows a heated intervention by the prime minister in the House of Commons, setting up a severe municipal crisis for the Greens as they grapple with falling poll numbers and internal turmoil following the decision.

The directive was confirmed by senior figures after the prime minister condemned the policy during parliamentary exchanges, describing the declaration as wrong and antisemitic. According to reporting by the Metro, party chair Bridget Phillipson stated that where local Labour groups currently maintain power-sharing arrangements with the Greens, they expect their counterparts to clarify that they reject the national position and urge their leadership to reconsider. Local Green groups have been asked to respond urgently, with Labour warning that any local arrangements will be terminated if assurances cannot be provided.

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Labour currently maintains coalitions or working agreements with the Greens in various authorities, including Sheffield City Council, Lewes, Warwick, and Havant Borough Council in Hampshire, alongside more than ten other areas where local administrations operate as broader coalitions. The unfolding municipal fallout comes on top of intense political pressure following a local parliamentary by-election defeat in Holborn and St Pancras, where Labour candidate Sagal Abdi-Wali secured victory.

The political friction traces back to a vote by members of the Green Party of England and Wales at their conference in Brighton. The approved text states that Zionism is an ideology supporting an ethnonationalist Jewish state in historic Palestine to the exclusion or domination of the non-Jewish population, while rejecting a two-state solution in favour of a single democratic Palestinian state.

Green Party leader Zack Polanski faces a leadership crisis as a result of the fallout, defending parts of the motion while admitting the text was imperfect. As reported by the BBC, Polanski stated that he is a Jewish leader and a victim of antisemitism daily, while accusing the prime minister of arming a genocide. Conversely, senior party figures and former leaders have spoken out against the direction of the party. Former leader Caroline Lucas argued that allowing a tiny fraction of the membership to push through such a major policy change exposed critical structural flaws, calling for internal rules to be reviewed and for the motion's key backer to be suspended pending investigation.

The policy has also drawn external scrutiny and legal complaints. The Campaign Against Antisemitism referred the adopted policy to the Equality and Human Rights Commission, arguing it possessed real potential to embolden antisemitic expressions. Meanwhile, the European Greens expressed deep concern over the motion, officially distancing themselves from the position.

Local authorities controlled by the Greens are navigating separate financial and political pressures. In Hackney, newly elected Mayor Zoë Garbett hosted an anti-austerity summit that brought together cross-party representatives, where administrations defended plans to set balanced budgets and manage fiscal deficits despite severe funding shortfalls. At the same time, the broader politics landscape remains volatile as parties position themselves ahead of upcoming legislative agendas and local government realignments.

What happens next depends heavily on how local Green groups respond to Labour's ultimatum regarding their municipal coalitions. If local Green councillors refuse to condemn the national policy or fail to persuade their leadership to alter course, Labour has vowed to formally collapse the shared administrations across towns and cities nationwide.