Adrian Ramsay, a former co-leader of the Greens and one of their five MPs, has urged the party's councillors to reject the recently adopted "Zionism is racism" motion. He stated that this would help them remain in power in local government, highlighting internal dissent over the policy.
The motion, adopted at the party's conference, also advocates for a single Palestinian state in place of Israel. Ramsay expressed satisfaction that several Green council groups have already condemned the policy.
Last week, Labour instructed its local parties to terminate power-sharing agreements with Green groups if the Greens did not disown the motion. Ramsay advised Green groups to clarify their position on the motion and maintain coalitions where possible, despite understanding reluctance to be "bullied" by Labour.
Green council groups in Lewes, Warwick, Rother, and Havant, which share power with Labour, have already rejected the motion. The Greens in Southwark also disowned the policy to maintain a coalition with the Liberal Democrats.
Ramsay's public call places him at odds with current co-leader Zack Polanski, who has stated he will not seek to overturn the motion, though he wishes to amend it to remove the call for a single Palestinian state at the first available opportunity. Polanski defended the motion on Sunday, stating party rules mean the policy will stand for at least two years.