Reform UK reporting Green leader Zack Polanski to police over Instagram post

Reform UK has reported Zack Polanski, leader of the Green Party, to the police after he shared an Instagram post featuring a photograph of a man wearing a t-shirt with the name “Nigel” alongside an image of a guillotine. One of the images shared showed a black t-shirt with the phrase “We’re only making plans for Nigel,” with a large guillotine depicted below the text.

Nigel Farage, leader of Reform UK, responded by sharing a screenshot of the post on X, stating, “If I was to post anything as inciteful then I would expect to be arrested, and so should Polanski.” A spokesperson for the Green Party explained that Polanski immediately removed the post once he was made aware of the image and emphasized that he does not support such “dangerous message[s].” The post, which Polanski shared with his 713,000 followers, included several photos from a Green Party event held on Sunday, and was shared after he agreed to collaborate with another account.

The Metropolitan Police confirmed that they had received a third-party report about the image on social media and are taking the matter seriously, conducting inquiries into the incident. The phrase on the t-shirt, “We’re only making plans for Nigel,” is a reference to a 1979 song by the band XTC. The Green Party further clarified that Polanski had been tagged in a post containing 20 images and accepted the request without fully realizing the offensive content on one of the images. They acknowledged the shirt was in poor taste, especially considering heightened concerns about the safety of public figures, and urged those in public discourse to promote kindness and avoid further division.

Reform UK’s home affairs spokesperson, Zia Yusuf, described the image as “a photo of man calling for the beheading of Nigel Farage,” which he argued amounted to incitement to murder. Yusuf confirmed the party reported the post to the police and also plans to notify the Greater London Assembly’s monitoring officer, where Polanski is an elected member. Yusuf condemned the post saying, “To do this just two weeks after our friend Ann was murdered is staggering. This is incitement to murder. It should be treated as such by the police.” The reference was to Ann Widdecombe, a prominent Reform UK member who was found dead at her home in Devon on 9 July; a 28-year-old man has been charged with her murder. This tragedy has reignited concerns about the security of politicians, coinciding with the anniversaries of the murders of Labour MP Jo Cox and Conservative MP David Amess.

In the wake of Widdecombe’s death, Polanski called for additional security measures for all party leaders. Speaking on BBC Breakfast, he expressed his concerns about personal safety, saying, “I am worried and I have been worried for a long time. I would encourage the government to provide me with extra security, but that is a choice for them.” Andy Burnham also supported a serious review into MPs’ security earlier this month. Separately, Reform UK Treasury spokesperson Robert Jenrick accused the government of “dereliction of duty” regarding Farage’s security after it was revealed the party declined a government-funded security offer last year. The Home Office denied Jenrick’s claims, stating that independent security experts are responsible for determining MPs’ security arrangements, not government ministers

Read the full article from The BBC here: Read More