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The Board of Deputies of British Jews, the largest Jewish organization in the United Kingdom, has labeled the Green Party of England and Wales as a racist group. This condemnation came in reaction to a policy motion titled “Zionism is racism,” which was approved at the Green Party’s conference earlier this month.
Phil Rosenberg, president of the Board of Deputies, highlighted that the vote passed with overwhelming support—118 votes to one—and declared that the Greens, “by adopting an antisemitic platform, become a racist party.” Rosenberg further emphasized the significance of this decision, stating 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 racist.” He added that the Green Party’s stance unfairly brands much of the Jewish community and its organizations with a harmful slur, effectively giving political legitimacy to prejudice against Jews. Rosenberg called on the Green Party leadership to reverse the policy and confront the antisemitism it has legitimized.
In response, the Green Party denied discriminating against Zionist views, rejecting the characterization given by the Board of Deputies. A party spokesperson maintained, “We do not discriminate against people who hold Zionist views,” and stressed their commitment to speaking out about the violence in Gaza and advocating for stronger sanctions against the Israeli government. It was also noted that Israel denies the allegations of genocide in the region. The Board of Deputies’ motion urged other political parties to avoid coalition deals with the Greens unless the party’s policy on Zionism is rejected and overturned, warning that cooperation without such repudiation would demonstrate a failure to take antisemitism seriously.
The controversy has led to tangible political repercussions. For instance, the Labour Party has issued an ultimatum to its local Green coalitions, demanding that they renounce the motion or risk losing Labour’s support. The Green Party’s internal motion described Zionism as “an ideology supporting an ethnonationalist Jewish state in historic Palestine to the exclusion and/or domination of the non-Jewish population,” a definition that sparked criticism from Jewish groups, several Green MPs, two former party leaders, and opposition parties alike. The Board of Deputies and the Jewish Leadership Council jointly asserted that “Zionism is anti-racism, creating a refuge for Jews in their ancient homeland after millennia of persecution outside it.” Notably, Green Party leader Zack Polanski, who is Jewish, did not vote on the motion due to his early departure from the conference to campaign in a by-election. Polanski has since expressed a desire to amend the policy but confirmed that he would not seek to overturn it before its current expiry in 2028
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