Exclusive: UK Greens' Zack Polanski vows to champion local issues, global justice if elected MP

UK Green Party leader Zack Polanski has vowed to champion the concerns of local constituents as well as peace and justice around the world if elected to parliament, in exclusive comments to The New Arab on Friday.

Polanski was selected as the party’s candidate for the Holborn and St Pancras by-election following a local party vote the night before, in which he ran against Camden councillor Hamza Chowdhury.

Speaking to The New Arab after the announcement, Polanski underscored the “obvious” issues the people of Holborn and St Pancras care about, including lowering bills and rent controls, but also making sure they were aware they “can and absolutely care about what’s happening around the world”.

“Our government has not just been complicit in the genocide, we've been active participants in it,” Polanski told The New Arab, referring to Israel's war on Gaza.

The Green leader called the Labour government's recent sanctions on Israeli settlements “a step in a positive direction”, but said it's important to note that most people would be surprised the UK was trading with illegal settlements in the first place.

“I think it's about making sure that in Holborn and St Pancras, people have an MP that they know is going to stand up for the things that they care about,” he said.

“What I will do as a Green MP, is yes, focus on the issues that people care on the everyday on their doorstep, and focus on issues of peace and justice around the world too.”

“There is still so much more to be done.”

The crowd cheered as Polanski was announced as candidate, taking to the stage where he was joined by Gordon and Denton MP Hannah Spencer.

“I am here to fight for you,” Polanski told the crowd. “Greens might be the underdog in this election, but we have the momentum, and we can win.”

Polanski will be standing against Labour’s Sagal Abdi-Wali, leader of Camden Council since May and a councillor for Camden Square since 2022.

Polanski, who hopes to become London's first Green MP in October, told the crowd that voting for the Greens “sends a clear signal”.

“We cannot take the pressure off now, because another Labour MP would just be one more on top of an already massive majority,” he said.

“It would signal to a Labour council, with a Labour mayor, and a Labour government that they can start taking voters for granted once again.”

“We want better and demand better for our communities.”

The Holborn and St Pancras by-election was triggered after former prime minister Keir Starmer stepped down as MP in September.

The Green Party made history in 2024 after becoming the first political party in England and Wales to formally recognise and condemn Israel’s war on Gaza and describe it as a genocide.

Since being elected as Green leader in 2025, Polanski has made the Palestinian cause a key plank of the party's platform, which has seen the party pose a significant challenge to Labour from the left.