Labour ends Green power-sharing in 11 councils over Zionism motion
Labour has ended power-sharing arrangements with the Greens in 11 councils after the Green Party adopted a motion describing Zionism as a form of racism.
How it was covered
- BBC Two carried 75% of the airtime and concentrated on blame for the split, local alliance damage and disputes over antisemitism.
- ITV concentrated on the affected councils, local service impact and pressure on Zack Polanski.
- Channel 5, BBC One, Channel 4 and Sky News: not found in tracked broadcasts.
- BBC News and GB News: covered online, not found on air.
The Full Story
A plain summary built from the channels that reported this story. Facts only one channel reported are attributed to it.
Labour has ended power-sharing arrangements with the Greens in 11 councils after the Green Party adopted a motion describing Zionism as a form of racism. ITV reported that the deals had fallen apart in Sheffield, Warwick and West Devon following the motion, which was passed a few weeks earlier.
Jasmine Cameron-Chileshi, ITV's political reporter, said the motion had drawn criticism from some Jewish groups, senior Green Party figures and the Prime Minister. She said the Prime Minister called it anti-Semitic and said Labour wanted nothing to do with it. The Labour Party then confirmed it would no longer continue coalition and power-sharing arrangements with the Greens.
ITV reported that the Green Party and the local government association Green Group said they were hugely disappointed by the decision. It said the practical effect would depend on each council's make-up. Green or Labour councillors might try to govern as minorities, and some local decisions could take longer to agree. ITV also said the row would intensify pressure on Zack Polanski, who has faced questions inside and outside his party about his leadership.
On BBC Two's Politics Live, Rachel Taylor defended Labour's position. She said Green councillors had been asked to denounce the party's national policy and that, where they refused, Labour could not continue the arrangements because dogma had been put above local services. Rachel Millward, a Green council leader, said cross-party alliances had delivered health centres, sports and leisure facilities, nature restoration, and social and affordable housing. She criticised Andy Burnham, saying his move had put local services at risk and destabilised councils.
Millward said Labour councillors had been instructed to leave even though her council had denounced the motion. She accused Labour of materially supporting a genocide in Israel, an allegation the Israeli government denies, and criticised the reopening of licences for Rosebank. Rachel Taylor said Labour would protect all citizens, including Jewish residents, and that it could not work with a party whose policy was racist at its heart.
The BBC programme also heard that the Board of Deputies of British Jews had declared the Greens a racist party. Millward said legal advice had found nothing anti-Semitic in the motion's wording.
Key Claims
Claims reported during this story's coverage, grouped by how many channels reported each one. Select a dot to see the source excerpt.
| Claim |  |  |
|---|---|---|
| Reported by all 2 channels | ||
| Labour pulled out of power-sharing agreements with the Greens in 11 councils, including Sheffield, Warwick and West Devon, over a policy defining Zionism as racism. | ||
| Only on one channel | ||
| Rachel Millward said her council had denounced the motion but Labour councillors were still instructed to leave. | Not reported by ITV | |
| Rachel Taylor said Labour asked Green councillors to denounce the Green Party's national position to continue power-sharing. | Not reported by ITV | |
| The Board of Deputies of British Jews declared the Green Party to be a racist party. | Not reported by ITV | |
| The decision was expected to increase pressure on Zack Polanski over his leadership. | Not reported by BBC Two | |
| The Green Party and the Local Government Association Green Group expressed disappointment at Labour's decision. | Not reported by BBC Two | Reported by ITV |
Channel Perspectives
What each channel focused on, with key quotes.
ITV1 led with the practical consequences of Labour's decision, naming councils where deals had collapsed and explaining how local governance could change. It also tied the row to pressure on Zack Polanski and carried the Green Party's disappointed response.
- “Labour has pulled out of power sharing deals with the Greens in 11 councils after the party's adoption of a controversial policy defining Zionism as a form of racism.”
- “the Green Party and the local government association Green Group said that they were hugely disappointed by the decision.”
- “But all of this is going to intensify pressure on Zack Polanski who has faced a lot of questions inside and outside of his party in relation to his leadership of the Green Party.”
BBC Two's Politics Live treated the story as a live argument about blame, with Labour and Green guests disputing who had damaged local services. It focused on Andy Burnham's role, Green claims about genocide and Rosebank, and whether a Green council had denounced the motion. It also raised the Board of Deputies' view and legal advice on the motion's wording.
- “It's not Andy Burnham that's put local services at risk. It's those Greens councillors that have clung on to a dark moment.”
- “No, they've been instructed to go. So, figure that one out.”
- “there is actually nothing anti-Semitic in the words of that text.”
Who was on air
People and organisations each channel put on air while covering this story. Channels' own presenters and reporters are not listed. Names as transcribed, and the list can miss people.
Broadcast Timeline
News broadcasts tracked for this story, in time order.