Zack Polanski has come under fire after skipping an important meeting about London’s Jewish community to campaign to be the MP for Holborn & St Pancras.
The Green Party leader was instead out campaigning in Urdu as he challenges Labour to win the seat vacated by former Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer.
The fire committee, which includes Mr Polanski as a member, examined the response to the arson attacks against the Jewish community in London.
Mr Polanski’s decision to campaign rather than attend such a key meeting on issues affecting London’s Jewish community has prompted questions about his priorities as he seeks to become an MP while continuing to collect his taxpayer-funded £66,000 salary from City Hall.
The Conservative Party’s City Hall leader, Susan Hall, said: “I am shocked and disappointed that Zack Polanski would skip important meetings to campaign instead.
“We are privileged to be members of the London Assembly, are paid by taxpayers to do so, and have a responsibility to scrutinise the mayor and his officials.”
“I think for Mr Polanski to skip the meeting examining the response to the horrendous arson attacks on the Jewish community in London and to campaign in a constituency not too far from where those same attacks took place speaks volumes about his character.”
She added: “It is a disgrace, and it lets down London’s Jewish community who are already so wary about the Greens.”
The Green Party leader is campaigning to win Sir Keir Starmer’s former seat of Holborn & St Pancras
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Mr Polanski also sits on other committees scrutinising the capital’s budget and environment.
However, he failed to attend last week’s plenary meeting, which examined the London Plan and issues including housing and traveller sites.
The Green Party leader did attend London Mayor’s Questions today but left early.
Mr Polanski was involved in an exchange with Lord Sadiq Khan, which saw the London Mayor mock the Green Party leader for campaigning in Urdu.
Sir Keir Starmer at his Holborn and St Pancras count | PA
Gary Mond, President of the Reform Jewish Alliance, said: “As a member of the Greater London Authority and its Fire Committee, Zack Polanski should have been present and could have contributed his ideas as to how best such horrendous incidents can be avoided in the future.”
Mr Mond added: “The fact that he wasn’t in attendance demonstrates contempt for London’s Jewish community and an indifference to these and other acts of antisemitism that now tragically dominate the lives of so many Jews in London.
”Committee seats in the London Assembly are decided based on party size, with parties such as the Greens nominating from their own AMs as to who take-up the positions.
Mr Polanski serves alongside Benali Hamdache and Caroline Russell, who has stood in for her leader at meetings, while he continues to receive his full salary.
Lord Khan told the assembly that he was ‘worried’ Zack Polanski would ask his question in Urdu | LONDON ASSEMBLY
William Yarwood, Campaigns Director at the Taxpayers Alliance, said: “If these reports are accurate, Londoners will rightly ask why an Assembly Member on more than £66,000 is skipping key meetings to campaign for another job.
“Missing scrutiny on housing is bad enough, but missing a meeting on antisemitic arson attacks is especially serious.”
Mr Yarwood added: “Taxpayers pay Assembly Members to represent Londoners, and they should expect them to turn up.”
However, a spokesman for the Green Party said: “Zack sent his apologies in advance to the Chair that he would not be able to attend a few committee meetings.
“For the fire committee meeting, Green Assembly member Caroline Russell attended as Zack’s substitute.
“This is a commonly used mechanism allowing colleagues to bring their experience to a meeting with a specific theme or focus and is a regular occurrence on committees.”