Zack Polanski row deepens as minister brands Golders Green response 'disgusting'

Zack Polanski has said he remains “concerned” about the police response to an antisemitic terror attack in north London despite a major backlash. The Green leader last week apologised after fury erupted when he shared a post on X accusing arresting officers of "repeatedly and violently kicking a mentally ill man in the head" after he had been tasered. Metropolitan Police chief Sir Mark Rowley warned the accusation could have a "chilling effect" and hit out at "armchair experts” in an open letter. Mr Polanski admitted his repost was not "appropriate" but appeared to stand by his position about the policing response to the Golders Green attack on Sunday. He told BBC ’s Laura Kuenssberg: “I was very concerned by what I saw and I remain concerned. The reason why I've apologised is because I accept that X or social media is not the appropriate forum to have that concern. "I also think an open letter from the commissioner also wasn't necessarily the appropriate forum, but I'm glad we've resolved that now. I've asked the commissioner for a meeting. I'll be taking those conversations up in private." Mr Polanski, who is a member of the London assembly, which plays a part in overseeing the Met Police, added: "It's important that everyone who works in public service, including people who are being brave, should not be above scrutiny." Elsewhere, Mr Polanski, who is Jewish, criticised any moves to crack down on pro-Palestine protests in a bid to deal with antisemitism. He discouraged people from using the phrase “globalise the intifada” but added he is “not interested” in policing language. The comments come after the PM said protesters have a responsibility to call out chants of the phrase at Gaza marches. He said: “It’s not a phrase I would use personally and that’s because I think if there’s other phrases you can use or other ways to do things then why not just do them. “I want people to be more effective so I wouldn’t encourage people to use it because actually I think you can make your point a lot more effectively and not get into this conversation about language. “Words matter, but the tens of thousands of Palestinians who have been murdered, the people in Lebanon who have been killed, these people matter too, and I think if people want to protest, that it’s important we defend their right to protest. Yes I do discourage, to give you a more direct answer, the use of the phrase but I’m not interested in trying to police people’s language.” Steve Reed, Labour ’s Communities Secretary, said: “It’s shameful that Zack Polanski is still questioning the police’s response to the appalling antisemitic terrorist attack in Golders Green. Brave police officers ran towards unknown danger, risking their lives, at the time having no idea how much further the situation could have escalated. “Polanski’s apology clearly means nothing given he continues to denigrate the actions of our brave police officers. He should be utterly ashamed – he is completely unfit to lead a political party.” Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander also criticised Mr Polanski's initial sharing of a social media post criticising police. She said on Sunday: "I thought it was disgusting what he did and absolutely abhorrent. Those police officers ran towards danger. They were armed only with a taser that they had already discharged. "The guy still had a knife in his hand. They were armed with their courage and their training, and I think, for the leader of a political party to jump onto Twitter , start retweeting content criticising those policemen who responded with incredible bravery in what was a very difficult situation, I think it demonstrates that the man is not fit to lead a political party." Keir Starmer last week suggested there may be a case for banning some protests and called for tougher protesting of language used during marches. Kemi Badenoch has called for a moratorium on pro-Palestine marches. The UK's national threat level was last week increased from substantial to severe following the terror attack in Golders Green, which saw two Jewish men stabbed in the street on Wednesday. A review is currently ongoing into the impact of protests on the cohesion and safety of society.