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While Aditya Chakrabortty may be right that much of the surge in Green support in England is due to the push factor of people loosing patience with the Labour Party, I think he's perhaps underplaying the importance (at the same moment) of the Green Party of England & Wales finding a leader whose pitch perfectly resonates with that audience... still, the key thing is both push & pull factors are currently accelerating the Greens into the centre of UK politics.

#greens
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/feb/05/green-party-lewisham-zack-polanski-labour

the Guardian

The Green surge shows British politics has reached a turning point - and it has surprisingly little to do with Zack Polanski | Aditya Chakrabortty

At a party event in a school hall in Lewisham, people told me how disillusionment with Labour has led to this moment, says Guardian columnist Aditya Chakrabortty

Nicovel0 🍉

@Nicovel0@mastodon.social replied · 2 days ago

@ChrisMayLA6 there are other things that really push up the Greens (I’m a member). The Epstein files further discredit the “old” political class, with no doubt more well known names coming out. Farage’s links to both Putin and Trump are going to come up again and again. And also there is this article you linked to earlier: climate change is getting worse, faster, and the Greens are the only party for whom this is central. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2026/feb/05/flawed-economic-models-mean-climate-crisis-could-crash-global-economy-experts-warn

the Guardian

Flawed economic models mean climate crisis could crash global economy, experts warn

States and financial bodies using modelling that ignores shocks from extreme weather and climate tipping points

Nicovel0 🍉

@Nicovel0@mastodon.social replied · 2 days ago

@ChrisMayLA6 lets keep in mind that when party labels are removed, Green policies get around 60%+ approval among voters. Now that the Greens have a platform and a charismatic, media savvy leader average people will finally hear that message and it will be taken and presented seriously, not as the ravings of a lunatic that weaves his own hemp sandals.

GeofCox

@GeofCox@climatejustice.social replied · 2 days ago

@Nicovel0 @ChrisMayLA6

Sorry to focus on the caveat, but I was struck by the words of a Green candidate quoted by Chakrabortty: “We have an infrastructure for a party of 50,000 members when we’ll soon be at 200,000. It’s not sustainable.”

One reason Labour is in a mess is that there are really only 2 sources of funding for a big political party operation in the UK now. One is big business - which in the UK means the City of London - and the other is mass-membership, including the rump of the wider labour movement. Having turned against Corbyn's mass-membership model (which was working, financially), Starmer's Labour had nowhere to go but into bed with the City. Financial salvation, electoral suicide.

The Green Party obviously has the potential to be a mass-membership party, and I think not only a lot more disillusioned former Labour members, but also Labour-affiliated organisations, can be attracted. It will need, probably, membership of the order Corbyn achieved - maybe half-a-million - to fund an electoral machine to match its big-business-funded opponents.

RolloTreadway

@RolloTreadway@beige.party replied · 2 days ago

@Nicovel0 @ChrisMayLA6 @GeofCox Labour still gets a huge share of its income from union subs, so it wasn't a simple choice between members and corporate donors.

But yes, aside from that, the Greens' difficulty in finding revenue is the great stumbling block. I'm not sure how to get around that.

LionelB

@lionelb@expressional.social replied · 2 days ago

@Nicovel0 @ChrisMayLA6 @GeofCox

We must have legislation to block big business contributions. Call it what it is - bribery.

GeofCox

@GeofCox@climatejustice.social replied · 2 days ago

@lionelb

Here in France businesses are not allowed to make party political donations, and donations from individuals are limited to 7,500€ per person per year. In fact such limitations, and state-funding of political parties, is common among the UK's neighbouring countries.

@Nicovel0 @ChrisMayLA6

LionelB

@lionelb@expressional.social replied · 2 days ago

@Nicovel0 @ChrisMayLA6 @GeofCox

In Britain, we are deliberately rigged to encourage bribery. Places in the upper legislative chamber are sold on the open market.

Imbrium Photo

@imbrium_photography@mastodon.social replied · 2 days ago

@GeofCox @Nicovel0 @ChrisMayLA6 I wonder if it's possible/worthwhile for the Greens (or Lib Dems ?) to start their own unions (or maybe persuade an existing union to defect!) ? (To mainly be mutually beneficial for members, but also to provide some funding to the party)

GeofCox

@GeofCox@climatejustice.social replied · 2 days ago

@imbrium_photography@mastodon.soc

I'm sure the disillusion among individual Labour members is also common among its affiliated organisations - several trade unions have voiced it.

ial @Nicovel0 @ChrisMayLA6

Nicovel0 🍉

@Nicovel0@mastodon.social replied · 2 days ago

@GeofCox @ChrisMayLA6 I’m wondering how comfortable the cooperative party is feeling right now as part of labour. If I was Polanski I’d be talking to them. My union is unaffiliated and will remain so, because we have to be independent.

Rainer Zufall

@rainerzufall_le@mastodon.social replied · 2 days ago

@GeofCox @Nicovel0 @ChrisMayLA6
Remarkable numbers. For comparison, the German Green Party had about 185000 members at the end of November.

Emeritus Prof Christopher May

@ChrisMayLA6@zirk.us replied · 2 days ago

@GeofCox @Nicovel0

As always Geof, right on the button - and boosted

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