Zack Polanskis Popularity Drops After Golders Green Incident

Zack Polanski’s popularity has plummeted in the wake of the row over his reaction to the Golders Green attacks.

The Green Party leader was forced to apologise after appearing to criticise the police’s response to the incident.

Shilome Rand, 34, and Moshe Shine, 76, were left seriously injured in what police have described as a terrorist incident last Wednesday.

A video of the incident posted showed Metropolitan Police apprehending the man suspected of carrying out the attacks.

Polanski retweeted a post on X which said: “So essentially [Met commissioner Mark Rowley’s] officers were repeatedly and violently kicking a mentally ill man in the head when he was already incapacitated by taser.”

That led to criticism from Rowley, who wrote to Polanski condemning “observers with little experience of policing in the real world” for criticising his officers.

Polling released by More in Common on Tuesday – two days before voters go to the polls in crucial elections across the UK – showed the Green Party leader’s approval rating has fallen by 14 points to minus 27 in the past week.

It means he now has a lower rating than Kemi Badenoch, Ed Davey and Nigel Farage, though remains comfortably ahead of Keir Starmer, who is by far the least popular leader with an approval rating of minus 45.

Responding to the findings, More in Common director Luke Tryl said the row was making some people “think twice” about voting Green.

He said: “Two things have happened. Zack Polanski’s negatives have gone up but some people, particularly younger people, have moved to being neutral about him.

“The Greens are seen as a hopeful party, quite a nice party. I just think that what some of the candidates have said about antisemitism and Zack perhaps not being robust enough on that, and responding in the way he did to the police, is making some people think twice.”

However, despite the row, the Greens are still forecast to gain round 600 English council seats in Thursday’s elections.

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