Zack Polanski upgrading ‘under-ambitious’ targets for number of Green MPs

Zack Polanski said becoming Prime Minister is not his target, but admitted he has upgraded his initial aims since becoming Green Party leader.

Hannah Spencer became only the party’s fifth ever MP when she won the vote in Gorton and Denton, south east Manchester, in February.

And Mr Polanski said that success, a rise in membership and improved polling results have forced him to reassess his ambitions for the party he was elected to lead in September 2025.

He told the BBC’s Political Thinking With Nick Robinson podcast that “winning a lot more MPs” and local councillors was his target.

“I was talking about 30-40 when I ran for leader,” he said.

“Now, saying that it feels under ambitious and actually as our poll ratings are tripling, we’re getting more and more members. When I became or when I ran for leader, we had about 55,000 members. We’ve just hit over 220,000.”

Asked if he had reached a stage where he could think about becoming Prime Minister, he replied: “That really isn’t the target right now.

“It’s definitely in my mind because I get asked about it all the time.

“The next step is to win a lot more MPs and potentially hold the balance of power and then I think that’s really interesting because you’re having conversations about proportional representation, a wealth tax, climate action and various other policies to reduce people’s cost of living and make life better for everyone in this country.”

He described changes to the voting system as “a huge prize” with proportional representation a “burning ambition”.

Mr Polanski reiterated his apology after being dogged by questions over his claim to a Sun newspaper journalist in 2013 that hypnosis could increase a woman’s breast size.

“It does make me cringe. It’s embarrassing,” he said. “At some point, I think it’s important that I keep putting forward actually what I’m doing right now. I made a mistake and I acknowledge I made the mistake.

“I think there’s two main apologies there. One is working with The Sun, which is something now as a politician I would never do. And that’s not to back away from my apology.

“You know, I went along with it and I have that culpability in that. Thirteen years ago, before I was a politician, but I acknowledge that and I apologise for that.”