Green Party leader Zack Polanski has described sharing an Instagram post featuring a guillotine and the phrase 'we're only making plans for Nigel' as an 'inadvertent mistake', but has repeatedly refused to apologise to Reform UK leader Nigel Farage. The post, which was a collaboration with a photographer, showed 20 images, with the fifth depicting a man wearing a T-shirt with the guillotine image. Polanski told BBC Newsnight that he accepted the collaboration request without realising the content, and removed it as soon as he became aware. 'As soon as I was aware of what happened, I unaccepted it and took it down,' he said.
Polanski refuses to apologise
Despite the controversy, Polanski ruled out apologising to Farage. 'If I'd done it deliberately, I'd be apologising,' he said. 'But because this was a mistake, I think the important thing is that I point out it's a mistake, that I also make sure that I condemn political violence and also crucially make a commitment to be better on my social media.' He added that if Farage apologised for 'all the times that he's put other people in danger', he would be happy to make an apology. The Green Party has described the T-shirt as 'clearly in poor taste'.
Reform UK reports Polanski to police
Reform UK has reported Polanski to the Metropolitan Police, with home affairs spokesperson Zia Yusuf accusing him of 'inciting murder'. Farage has called for Polanski's arrest. The Met said it was 'conducting inquiries' and takes 'reports of this nature extremely seriously'. Polanski said it would be 'odd' for police to speak to him about the incident, as he believes he has done nothing wrong other than making a mistake. He stated he would cooperate if contacted.
Political reactions
Work and Pensions Secretary Pat McFadden said all politicians have 'a duty to be careful about what they post', adding that it was for the police to decide if action was needed. He noted that 'it's not the first time Zack Polanski has done something like this', referencing a previous incident in May when Polanski apologised for sharing a post critical of police after the Golders Green stabbings. In that case, Polanski retweeted a post alleging officers were 'repeatedly and violently kicking a mentally ill man in the head' during an arrest.
Impact on Green Party polling
A national opinion poll this week showed the Greens' score falling by three percentage points, while another showed the party holding at 13%, well above the level before Polanski became leader last September. The controversy comes amid internal frustration within the Green Party over Polanski's social media management, with some members describing him as 'terminally online'.
