Six years ago, inspired by the actions of Greta Thunberg, thousands of students swapped pencil cases for placards and marched in towns and cities across Britain. As one of the young organisers of this movement, I joined student protests all over the country and continent, calling for an alternative to climate chaos.
“We are unstoppable, another world is possible,” we called out. Unfortunately, a Brexit-dominated general election soon followed, and the pandemic quickly after – our momentum was lost. The climate was cast aside and “net zero” became a meaningless evil for the newly emboldened, fossil-fuel-funded right-wing. Keir Starmer, who once personally assured me that he would never back down on his green new deal pledge, later went on to drastically cut and sideline his decarbonisation plans. As a result, the UK is falling scarily behind on essential climate commitments.
Read more:
- ‘Starmer needs to be more scared of us than Reform’: Zack Polanski on how the Greens can outflank Farage
- Green MP Ellie Chowns: ‘Half measures will no longer suffice – we need bold solutions to poverty’
- Green Party leader Carla Denyer on climate crisis, fighting for trans rights and beating Labour
Two things have become abundantly clear in the time since the climate strikes. Firstly, most people do not prioritise environmental concerns when they are struggling to put food on the table, worried about how to pay rent, or losing their loved ones in a pandemic. Secondly, crises – from climate change to Covid-19 – are not the same for everyone. During lockdowns, class largely dictated who was most exposed to the virus, who had access to decent care, and who got richer while others got poorer. Similarly, the effects of the climate crisis are set to hit the poorest the hardest. For green politics to be successful in 2025 and beyond, it needs to address the cost of living and take class seriously.
Right now, the Green Party (of England and Wales) finds itself in an intense leadership battle. Endorsed by most of the party’s establishment is the dual ticket of Adrian Ramsay, current co-leader and MP for Waveney Valley, and Ellie Chowns, MP for North Herefordshire; this duo’s campaign materials have stressed the importance of “credibility” and their role in Westminster. On the other side of the contest is current deputy leader and London Assembly member Zack Polanski, who has argued that the Greens need to embrace an “eco-populism” that lays the blame for climate change at the feet of the rich and powerful, and doesn’t expect working class people to pick up the costs of energy transition. While Polanski doesn’t have the same party establishment backing as Chowns and Ramsey, he makes a larger splash on TV and social media.
Both sides of this contest have their merits: Ramsey and Chowns’ gentle, uncontroversial approach allowed them to elect a record four MPs in the 2024 general election, including in the two former Conservative seats that these candidates hail from. However, with the Greens coming second to Labour in 39 constituencies, Polanski’s supporters have argued that there is much more potential for growth if they can capture the disillusioned left-wing voters abandoning Starmer’s government.
