Zack Polanski, the co-leader of the Green Party of England and Wales, has apologised for sharing a social media post critical of police following the Golders Green stabbings. The apology came after the Metropolitan Police commissioner, Sir Mark Rowley, said Polanski risked undermining public confidence in his officers.
Polanski had retweeted a post on X alleging that officers were “repeatedly and violently kicking a mentally ill man in the head” during the arrest of a suspect in the stabbings. The suspect, Essa Suleiman, 45, appeared in court on Friday charged with the attempted murders of three people in two knife attacks in London on Wednesday.
In a statement on Friday, Polanski said: “Everyone in leadership has a responsibility for lowering the temperature at a time of such tension, and I apologise for sharing a tweet in haste.” He added that he had invited Sir Mark Rowley to meet with him to discuss the police response and wider issues.
Sir Keir Starmer, the Prime Minister, described Polanski’s actions as “disgraceful”, saying he was “not fit to lead any political party”. Starmer suggested officers may have believed the suspect had an explosive device in his rucksack, requiring an instinctive reaction to disable him.
Sir Mark Rowley defended his officers, calling their actions “nothing short of extraordinary”. He said: “Officers need confidence in confronting these dangerous people, and if an eminent person thoughtlessly steps into that and undermines that, then I’m going to deal with that.”
