Senior Labour figures rule out cooperation

After the vote, Bridget Phillipson, the Labour chair, called the move "shameful", saying it highlighted how vital it had been for her party to tackle antisemitism under Jeremy Corbyn's leadership. Her fellow ministers backed her statement, though there was debate over whether Labour should go further and formally rule out any ties with the Greens, for example if a future general election delivered a hung parliament.

Senior party figures said it is very unlikely Labour would cooperate with the Greens in the future. One minister said they could not foresee any way for the two parties to work together, and a government official argued Labour should formally rule out any future coalition or other arrangement. A source linked to the Jewish Labour Movement said Labour should absolutely rule out governing with the Greens.

Liberal Democrats under pressure over Southwark

Within the Liberal Democrats there is pressure to end existing arrangements with Zack Polanski's party, with senior figures wanting the party to end its governing coalition with the Greens in Southwark, south London. The two parties have governed together there since May's local elections, with the Greens as the senior partner.

After the motion, both Southwark parties issued a "joint administration statement against antisemitism" that did not mention the new Green policy. It said they would continue working with Jewish community organisations to make sure they know they have a place in Southwark.

Sarah Ludford, a Liberal Democrat peer and former MEP, tagged Victor Chamberlain, the Lib Dem deputy leader of Southwark, in a post on X saying she did not understand:

She added that she believed the Southwark parties should entirely distance themselves from the motion. Another peer, Lynne Featherstone, formerly an MP, replied to a post by Chamberlain advising him to ditch the Greens: "I would ditch them. Grow a pair!"

Polanski's response after the Brighton vote

Green members voted at the party's conference in Brighton on Sunday, by 1,022 votes to 813, to adopt a binding policy that says Zionism should be treated by the party as racism. The policy calls for a single Palestinian state in place of Israel.

Zack Polanski left the conference early on Friday to campaign and stopped short of endorsing or criticising the motion. The European Greens and the German Greens distanced themselves from the policy ahead of his Monday-night statement, in which he said antisemitism and criticism of the Israeli state "are and must always be completely distinct". He added that he remained proud of the party's stance on Palestinian rights.

Holborn and St Pancras: the next test

The vote follows months of speculation about possible cooperation between Labour and the Greens. Earlier this year, Polanski said the Greens could consider an electoral pact with Labour under Andy Burnham or Angela Rayner, while ruling one out under the former prime minister Keir Starmer.

Labour views the motion, and the criticism that followed, as a way to simplify its political argument against the Greens at a time when Polanski's party has increasingly sought to attract disillusioned Labour voters on the party's left.

A major test comes on Thursday with voting in the Holborn and St Pancras byelection, where Polanski is seeking to win Starmer's former seat from Labour. The Greens have poured huge resources into the contest, helped by their massively increased membership, but Labour are considered the favourites to win. Polanski has described the contest as "really on a knife-edge".