Labour on notice but Polanski falls short in Holborn

As trade unions and anti-austerity activists demand substantive change, Labour is warned it must heed the call or face ‘concerted’ national action from an energised wider left LABOUR was warned it could face “far more concerted” action from the left after seeing off the Greens to win Holborn & St Pancras by-election today. Green Party leader Zack Polanski faced calls to resign following local council leader Sagal Abdi-Wali’s victory over him in the two-horse race called after former PM Sir Keir Starmer resigned from the seat. Ms Abdi-Wali, a former Somali child refugee, hailed her victory as a testament to the success of diversity in the borough after receiving 12,292 votes, 45 per cent of the vote, to Mr Polanski’s 8,928, with a low 38.7 per cent turnout. Dozens of local trade union branches and anti-austerity groups however backed a march calling for a “real end to austerity” from PM Andy Burnham at the Budget this month. George Binnette, co-chair for the Camden Trades Council, one of the organisations backing the October 27 demo, told the Morning Star: “While the Holborn & St Pancras result suggests a ‘Burnham bounce’ against the backdrop of a low turnout, the fundamental challenges for Labour certainly haven’t gone away. “For all the talk of ending neoliberalism, the Prime Minister and Chancellor have pledged to uphold the inherited fiscal rules and shown no sign of a willingness to tax the wealthiest. “Nobody is predicting a latter-day ‘winter of discontent’, but there is likely to be an upturn in workplace resistance against austerity, especially with another cost-of-living spike in the offing. “With all this in mind, the October 27 demo could be a springboard to far more concerted and co-ordinated action.” Tomorrow, tens of thousands are also expected to demonstrate in London on the third anniversary of the start of Israel’s genocide in Gaza. The National March for Palestine follows the admission by Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband that the millions of people who protested against his party’s approach to Gaza “were right.” Polls opened after a difficult week for Mr Polanski, who is Jewish, after he missed a vote for his party’s controversial “zionism is racism” resolution that calls for the state of Israel to be abolished. Speaking to the BBC after the result, he repeatedly refused to say whether Israel had a right to exist as he insisted he would remain in his post. He said that he was not aware that Lubna Speitan, one of the Green Party members proposing the motion, was listed in court documents as a “close friend” of a man later jailed for supporting al-Qaeda, at the time of the debate and that this was now being investigated by the party. “I believe Israelis and Palestinians should have equal rights in a democracy,” he said. “At the moment Palestinians don’t have equal rights, so I think I’m answering your question really clearly.” Today, leader of the Jewish Greens Vivien Lichtenstein called on Mr Polanski to step down as pressure increases on him to acknowledge anger within the party over the policy. Former Green leader Caroline Lucas also criticised Mr Polanski for a lack of leadership in missing the debate, saying the motion had shown how the party is “woefully exposed” to entryism. Green MP Sian Berry, who argued and voted against the motion, apologised for not doing more to kill it off, claiming that many members had been “persuaded” not to publicly campaign against it because of the by-election happening at the same time. A spokesperson for the Green Party said: “Our fight for justice, equality and public ownership has just got started. “We’re disappointed not to win but we tripled our vote share in one of Labour’s safest seats and turned it into a marginal. “Our strong challenge to Labour sends a clear demand to the Prime Minister: tax the rich, public ownership of water, rent controls, and no new oil and gas.” But Communist Party general secretary Alex Gordon said: “This by-election has shown that the Greens’ pin-up boy can’t fool all of the people all of the time. “The only positive lesson from this for the left is not to become beguiled by a progressive alliance with the Green Party.” Jewish Voice for Liberation, however, praises the Green Party leader's stance and for showing that ‘Jews are not one homogeneous bloc’ Zack Polanski is taking on Labour’s Sagal Abdi-Wali in a contest shaped by Gaza, housing and the fallout from Keir Starmer’s collapse. ANDREW MURRAY reports Green Party leader confirms he is looking to fight Holborn and St Pancras by-election