Phil Davies resigns from Welsh Green Party over Zionism motion

Phil Davies, the former deputy leader of the Green Party in Wales, announced on Tuesday that he had quit the party after a motion at the party’s Sunday conference declared “Zionism is racism”. Davies called the motion “pointless”, “imperialistic” and “idiotic”, saying it did nothing to improve lives in Palestine. He posted on social media that the decision had been “accelerated” by the motion and suggested Welsh Greens consider breaking away from the English‑wide Green Party.

The motion, which passed at the conference and will become party policy, calls for a single democratic Palestinian state across historic Palestine, including present‑day Israel. Party leader Zack Polanski, who is Jewish, responded by reiterating that the Greens will not exclude anyone on the basis of religion or community and that anti‑Semitism must be kept separate from criticism of the Israeli government. Israel subsequently banned Polanski from entry, and several Jewish groups described the motion as an attack on their community. Labour and Liberal Democrat MPs have referred the party to Britain’s equality watchdog over the resolution.

In an interview on BBC Radio Wales Breakfast, Davies said he could not see how the motion would materially help Palestinians and that he no longer wanted to be associated with “the sort of politics” it represented. He said Welsh Greens leader Anthony Slaughter had supported his resignation and that he hopes Welsh members will vote to split from the Green Party of England and Wales at a conference next month. Davies added that he has felt like a “token Welshman” within the larger party and that a separate Welsh Green Party would allow members to stand on their own feet. The upcoming vote could reshape the party’s structure in Wales and test how far the controversy will affect Green Party unity across the UK.