Gill Levy is a former Met Police custody sergeant who now writes for far-right libel factory the Jewish Chronicle. And today he was arrested, in glorious colour, after allegedly shoving a woman protesting peacefully against censorship of Palestine and Israel’s crimes against it. Levy is also one of a number of sinister, far-right ‘auditors’ who film and try to intimidate protesters.

Levy posts his footage along with openly Islamophobic — and often antisemitic — comments, describing support for the Palestinian people as mental illness and Jews who oppose Israel’s racism as ‘self-hating Jews‘:

The protest and the arrest have been ignored by the state and corporate media machine. But the Canary was on hand to film the arrest, as Levy tried to make light of it:

But Skwawkbox can reveal the fuller story — and activist photographer ‘BetterThanReal’ was on hand to photograph not just Levy, but the protest and Shalima, the resilient victim.

BetterThanReal told Skwawkbox:

Several hundred Palestine activists gathered Saturday February 21 from 2-4pm outside the British Museum in central London to protest what has been a prominent news topic this past week, the apparent bowing by the British Museum to demands from a pro-Israel lobby group, UK Lawyers for Israel (UKLFI) to amend the wording around several displays and exhibits in the Levant section.

Despite the fact that ‘Palestine’ has been an accepted term for this region since at least the Bronze Age, Zionists are keen to continue their program of erasing Palestinian history and culture, and censoring references to ‘Palestine’ are part of this agenda. While the Museum has denied removing the term ‘Palestine’ as a direct result of UKLFI pressure, it does admit to altering the wording on several of its displays.

The demonstrators displayed placards and in several speeches demanded the Museum engage in dialogue to resolve the issue – dialogue which includes Palestinian representatives.

Throughout the proceedings two ‘auditors’ were filming and harassing the peaceful demonstrators. One, Gill Levy, an ex-policeman and currently a contributor to the Jewish Chronicle newspaper, was particularly blatant in how he used his camera right in people’s faces. At one point a woman I was speaking to lurched into me, then turned around and shouted at the man behind her. It was Gill Levy. When she turned back to face me the colour had drained from her face. I asked if he had shoved her and yes, he had.

The incident was duly reported and Gill Levy arrested, although he had been released by early evening. We are waiting to hear what consequences will follow from his assault, if any.

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Apart from this aggression the entire demonstration passed off peacefully and there were no other arrests. The activists have made a strong case for Nicholas Cullinan, the museum’s director, to rethink his decision.

As usual, Jewish anti-genocide humanitarians were front and centre of the protest, exposing the Jewish Chronicle and Israel lobby’s antisemitic lie that support for Israel is intrinsic to Jewishness:

But Levy and a few other agitators were allowed to get in the faces of peaceful protesters, recording and provoking:

But after the alleged shove, Levy was handcuffed and removed — and didn’t look as happy about it as his performance on video tried to suggest:

Once again, the opponents of genocide showed their peaceful resolve, while the supporters of the genocidal colony — unsurprisingly — did not. But this is never mentioned by UK state-corporate media all too eager to demonise the lovers of peace and to cover for the racists who support slaughter and apartheid.

Skwawkbox contacted the Met for comment, but its press office was not staffed.

Featured image via the Canary

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Harry Styles has been a bona fide menswear style icon for years now – and with a new album dropping in just a few short weeks on 6 March, new looks from the Aperture singer are undoubtedly about to take centre stage again.

The chart-topping singer has been keeping something of a low profile since his mammoth Love On Tour world jaunt came to an end in 2023.

If you’re a fan of his very chic casual style, which has been papped in recent months while he’s been spotted out and about with Zoë Kravitz, here’s some shopping inspiration channelling off-duty Harry, without the pop star price tags.

They say the secret to great comedy is timing.  It’s no less true in politics.

Steeped as this site is in following, analysing, and sharing with you – whatever you make of it – the fluctuations and fortunes of the Conservative party, timing is occasionally everything.

The announcement of a new Conservative policy aimed at students, to scrap the Plan 2 interest payments on student loans has been fortuitous. Quite apart from being smart politics being aimed at younger voters, it reinforces the pattern of policy thought through, not needing instant clarification – a step in the Badenoch strategy of ‘slow, steady and consistent.’

There’s also a sense, I have to report, that the new policy is ‘about time too’ and followed up with me rather too quickly with, ‘and there’s more to come, right?’

Why? Because maybe you’ve felt it, it’s certainly there in the air, that niggling doubt is creeping in again.

It’s true, I reported back from the Conservative Winter party a few weeks ago where – albeit green shoots only – amongst donors, the shadow cabinet and senior Tory supporters there was a noticeable sense of resilience and confidence in themselves; that the road ahead was decidedly tricky but they felt more up to the task. They were certainly no longer cowed by their angry rivals to the right.

Well self-confidence is a good thing. Badenoch herself can take a lot of the credit for providing it, but like Labour’s shaky claims that the green shoots of economic confidence are returning, you have to be able to show they’re really there at all, and accept there is something terribly vulnerable about a ‘green shoot’. A Party cannot renew without faith in the leader, but faith in the leader can’t do the work alone.

The projection of self-confidence Kemi displayed to the party at last year’s Conference was only going to resonate for so long. She’s undoubtedly built on it, by establishing that despite opponents suggestions, she is leader of the real, official opposition, and consistently hammers the bruises the Government has so consistently been giving itself – so much so that Labour are in the kind of existential mess she has done well to drag her party just about clear of. .

But any hint of complacency about where they are now, would be politically suicidal.

Any confidence within a party is not a guarantee of confidence in a party. Indeed there is a whiff of a second ‘crisis of confidence’ coming, from the wider party and one that mirrors this time last year.

This feeling – and everything about politics today is ‘vibes’ – is not inexplicable. We are just over two months away from crucial elections that will have a big impact on everything that’s come in the last two years. They also carry warnings from similar elections last year where, leaders aside, it was obvious that the Tory brand was still as damaged as it had been in 2024.

This May’s local elections, and in Wales, and Scotland where Badenoch has been in recent days, will not be good for the Conservative party. They might not be catastrophic and indeed far, far worse for Labour, but dispel the idea they’ll be ‘good’ for fear of a nasty surprise.

They’re now more likely to amplify the leadership question in Labour ranks than the Conservatives, but the absence of a rival who was always planning to move afterwards will not stop questions about direction, chances of success, and amplify the ‘wobbles’ our parliamentary party have been prone to.

Reform had a good week. The big defections have pushed many long standing Conservatives to ask themselves, again, if they are backing the right horse, questions I hear asked across the Conservative party. These shouldn’t be dismissed as disloyalty.

The Gorton and Denton by-election is, as it was always going to be for the Tories, the flip side of Parliament. Reform don’t get much of a look in in the Chamber by not being the opposition, and therefore, simply protocol wise, they are something of a side show there. Well in Manchester despite a good and brave candidate, the Conservatives are the side show. In Gorton and Denton they are all but ignored.

This is relevant because of the narrative now pushed by some observers, and certainly rival parties, that the electorate are no longer angry or vengeful but completely indifferent to the Tories. It’s a line that should be caveated in the same way predictions of their demise have proved premature – it’s something they need people to believe is fact – however it would be the most arrogant and complacent Conservative that didn’t worry about the consequences were it to be true.

We are still within Badenoch’s ‘two years’ that it would take to even get a hearing again post 2024, but there are some important warnings flashing up.

Polling wise the Conservatives bubble around the 19-20 per cent mark, with the occasional unwelcome return to 16-17 percent and have not yet consistently overtaken Labour. That every percentage point rise is so much harder to gain in the five party landscape we now have, cannot brush aside the fact that the Conservatives are not even close to where they were in July 2024, and that any movement upwards is stubbornly slow, if not static.

On Friday, my good colleague Tali Fraser wisely took a point from Henry Hill’s final piece for ConservativeHome, and I’m going to do the same. It’s long been internal lore that ‘Henry has a point‘. No renewal, or recovery, or chance to win, will materialise until there is an offer that honestly and openly addresses the deep seated problems the UK faces. There are no parties doing that yet. They all claim to, but not the really big economic, and societal questions. I believe the Tories can, but they haven’t yet.

Everybody is carrying that damned “Ming Vase” still and wether you call it ‘responsible revolution’ or ‘responsible radicalism’ the latter bit of those phrases is still not quite there. From anyone.

Part of the dampener on existing Conservative ‘new policy’ announcements is whilst many Tories are happy to see the direction of travel within them and the potential appeal to a tough electorate, they are often correcting problems the party created for itself when in Government. Being under new management, which definitely makes a difference, doesn’t stop that both being true, and noticed by voters and rival parties. The drag anchor of the past is still there, and still a big problem.

The irony of Labour failing to go ‘further and faster’ in their map-less quest for purpose  is that phase is the whispered suggestion for many Conservatives amongst Conservatives about the current Conservative plan.

Again, the demand we saw before Conference last year is building – people might like what they’ve seen, but are hungry for more, and want it bigger, bolder – and always better. I know the leadership team are aware of all of this. They understand the secrets of timing, but if they also know that they can only say they are ‘on it’ .But saying is not the same as doing, to those asking.

When I started as Editor, I told of a friend who said to me ‘Giles, we are not done burning yet’. Despite suggestions the party is ‘still in denial’, usually from those who need that to be the case, the doubts about the future are creeping in again, and they need tackling.

The future is uncertain, there is a long way still to go, the finished picture is not available yet, and there are many who want to steam roller the entire project off course – permanently, if they can. It’s not unreasonable in such circumstances for those with reasonable doubts to seek reassurance that the project is on the right track, leads the right way, and is not a long slog to a dead end.

A new policy on student loans won’t be the complete answer, of course not, but it does at least show a process we are promised is ongoing is actually delivering, slowly. The party top brass has advocated patience so many times it’s a cliché, but as we get towards May, and certainly after, the worries will get louder.

The first rule of avoiding a trap is knowing of its existence. ConservativeHome will be eagerly seeking the signs that, if those at the top are aware of it, they are doing everything to avoid it.

Zack Polanski (Alamy)

5 min read30 min

The rise of the Greens has been one of the biggest stories in British politics since the 2024 general election. The party has surged in the opinion polls since London Assembly Member Zack Polanski became party leader in September, with his “eco-populism” posing a major threat to the Labour Party’s left flank.

Next week, when voters in Gorton and Denton go to the polls for a highly-anticipated by-election, the Greens are hopeful of unseating Labour in a constituency that the governing party has controlled for over 100 years. Victory in Greater Manchester for Green candidate Hannah Spencer would represent a seismic moment.

New Thinks Insight & Strategy research sheds more light on the party’s recent rise – as well as the hurdles they face in their bid to be the foremost force on the British left.

An online poll of 2,114 adults in the UK, carried out between February 13 and 15, found that nearly half of those surveyed (48 per cent) were considering voting for the Greens at the next general election.

Of those, 18 per cent were strong considerers, meaning there is a ‘very high’ or ‘good’ chance of them doing so, while 31 per cent were soft, meaning there is ‘some’ or ‘a small’ chance.

Asked what is attractive about the Greens, respondents described what they saw as Polanski’s positive attributes.

Nearly two-thirds of the party’s strong considerers (63 per cent) and exactly a quarter of soft considerers said the party leader being “a breath of fresh air” made them more likely to vote for the Greens at the next general election.

In two focus groups carried out by Thinks Insight & Strategy, in East London and Sheffield, people considering voting for the Greens described Polanski as charismatic, articulate and someone who is clear about what he thinks.

On what the party stands for, over three-quarters of strong Green considerers (76 per cent) and 42 per cent of soft considerers said they were more likely to vote for them because they want to help ordinary people, not billionaires. Similarly, 72 per cent of strong considerers and 36 per cent of soft considerers said they were more likely to support the party because they are focused on social and economic justice.

“It’s clear that the Green Party are picking up momentum, and our findings show they should be taken seriously. Almost half of UK adults are considering voting for them, including two-thirds of those who voted Labour at the last election,” Allie Jennings, director at Thinks Insight & Strategy, told PoliticsHome.

Speaking on this week’s episode of PoliticsHome podcast The Rundown, Green Party MP Ellie Chowns said she had met “huge numbers of people on the doorstep” in Gorton and Denton who are “really disillusioned with Labour”.

However, the research shared with PoliticsHome also detected potential challenges for Polanski and co when it comes to turning mid-term popularity into support at the next general election.

The first is the relative shallowness of their current support.

For example, the number of people strongly considering voting Green at the next general election is smaller than the number who say the same about Nigel Farage’s Reform UK. Thinks Insight & Strategy research for PoliticsHome late last year found that 16 per cent of people said there was a ‘very high’ chance of them voting for Reform at the next general election, compared to eight per cent who said the same about the Greens this month.

At the same time, most Green considerers are looking at three or more parties in total, while 73 per cent of strong considerers and 51 per cent of soft considerers told the survey they would vote for whoever was best-placed to defeat the Reform candidate in their area.

When prompted with a further squeeze question, 44 per cent of strong Green considerers said they would vote Labour to stop Reform, and 29 per cent would vote Green. Meanwhile, 45 per cent of soft Green considerers would back Labour to stop Reform, while just two per cent would vote Green in this scenario. Of the latter cohort, 14 per cent would vote for Farage’s party.

The findings suggest that current interest in the Greens is driven more by disappointment with the status quo than a strong ideological connection to the party.

Jennings added: “What united both the soft considerers and those considering the Greens more deeply was concern about a Reform UK victory. In the event of a credible threat from Reform, those considering Greens were prepared to vote tactically for whoever had the best chance of winning.

“This stands in contrast to consideration of Reform, which is much stronger and stickier. We saw last year that those considering Reform tended to dismiss any concerns about the party as untrue or unimportant. There was also a much stronger belief that they could win both locally and nationally.”

When the survey asked respondents what concerns they have about the Greens, the most prominent was a feeling that the party is too idealistic, with 28 per cent of soft considerers saying this made them less likely to vote for the party. 

This played out in two broad policy areas: 21 per cent of soft considerers said they were less likely to vote for the Greens because they are “weak on national security”, while a similar proportion (19 per cent) said the same because the party would “sacrifice economic growth and jobs for environmental concerns”.

In the two focus groups, people looking at the Greens as an option at the next election expressed a belief that the party could not win power, as they are not realistic enough.

“In focus groups, the Greens’ ideas were often dismissed as wishful thinking or fanciful,” said Jennings.

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With the local elections on the horizon, political parties are canvassing across the UK. As Labour and the Tories have fallen from grace, that’s opened up opportunities for smaller parties like Reform. At the same time, not everyone is open to the divisive politics of Nigel Farage, as is evident in the following video:

Reform canvassing massively backfires.

“Take this back. Look at this fucking shit. We don’t want you racist pricks… Fuck off, of the front of my house and don’t trespass again.. you’re not even from round here, are ya? You little prick.” pic.twitter.com/rwyaRFRiwS

— Mukhtar (@I_amMukhtar) February 21, 2026

‘Look at this fucking shit’

In the video above, the resident appears in front of her door cam holding a Reform leaflet. She proceeds to say:

Take this back. Look at this fucking shit. We don’t want you racist pricks.

It’s unclear what she says as she hands the door knocker the leaflet, but next she tells him:

No problem, you’re on camera; don’t worry, I’ll make sure everyone knows who you are.

Getting lively, she proceeds to shout:

F*ck off!

Off the front of my house, and don’t trespass again.

The lad attempts to get the last word in as she tells him to “go”. She also says:

Note the lack of a Sheffield accent. You’re not even fucking from round here, are you, you little prick?

In response, he says:

Have a lovely day.

While it’s obviously preferable he was polite, let’s not forget he was there pushing divisive, dogshit politics that exists solely to secure the continued privilege of billionaire scum, so fuck him.

Reform spotted

There is obviously an argument for not broadcasting the embarrassing encounters that door knockers have. At the same time, this guy is literally broadcasting himself, so that argument doesn’t apply here:

Have just finished a great day of leafletting here in Sheffield, the response has been incredible!

Labour’s time is up…in what used to be one of their biggest strongholds! 🥀

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It’s time for change. Britain needs Reform! 🩵🇬🇧@reformparty_uk @ReformDaily_ #BritainNeedsReform… pic.twitter.com/1bcuy88rKg

— Matt Smith – Reform UK Sheffield West 🇬🇧🩵 (@MattJSmith) February 21, 2026

We don’t disagree with him that time is up for the government; we just don’t see Reform offering anything other than a continuation of the politics of decline that Labour and the Tories have pushed for decades.

For more on how Reform aren’t what the claim to be, check out the following:

Featured image via X