Anyone else find the BBC interview with Zack Polanski rather combative?

[Needtoughlove]

Is anyone watching the interview of the Green Party Zach Polanski leader on BBC News tonight?

I had to check It wasn’t GBN. The way she pressed him and kept interrupting made it difficult to watch.

I am not a green supporter btw just noticing a pattern recently with BBC reporting.

I agree with the concerns over ZP on this.

I don’t see any connection to the current issue where Farage has made a mountain out of a molehill, by digging up and amplifying a SM post that had been deleted as soon as the mistake around it was realised.

ZP has proven himself to be a liability, and is a gift to the other parties.

If he carries on like this, he will soon be doing a bit of bird, as they say.

I’m flabbergasted that he has refused to apologise. He says he doesn’t need to apologise because it was a mistake! WTF! That’s the reasoning of an over-indulged teenager. He should resign, his fellow greenies must be furious.

His actual name is David Paulden - I am suspicious of people who change their names, especially from one as dull as Dave to the zingy name he has now.

People should apologise for mistakes. Who brought him up to think that this isn't something that's necessary?

Claiming 'it was a mistake, I didn't mean to' doesn't eliminate the impact of the mistake. If you accidentally tip wine down someone's front, of course you apologise madly. God, we even apologise if we accidentally bump into someone, let alone post pictures suggesting they should have their head chopped off.

Exactly I bought my children up to apologise for mistakes. It’s something most of us do instinctively by adult age.

Especially obvious in this case given what happened to Ann Widdicombe so recently.

I think it’s ridiculous that Polanski won’t apologise. Even if it was just a mistake, he should apologise for it. All he’s achieved is to give Nigel the chance to play the victim once again, which he loves to do.

This story would have died down if he’d apologised, and we would be talking about Clacton and Count Binface once again.

Exactly.

I am starting to think he just feels left out.

Everyone talking about Clayton - farage and bin face

Everyone talking about Burnham.

Cross party talks between con, lab, lib on various things.

I do think hes just feeling left out and wants to make a headline.

So last comment on this - Your pathetic ZP. Yes, just as pathetic as Farage. Two sides of the same coin.

Over and out from me

If I did not think that Farage would find a way to gain support from an apology last night I would agree with you.

Ideally ZP would have apologised when he first removed the post, and perhaps there would have been less for Farage to capitalise on. Though I doubt it. But on national TV, only after being hectored by a major presenter? Farage would make yet more mischief - a pungent phrase is more appropriate - and the country would be more at risk. It’s important that ZP condemned violence against in the strongest terms, several times.

If we replaced Farage with Ed Davey or Kemi Badenoch or any politician not suspected of both criminality and cultivating illegal ties to an enemy state, my answer would be different.

Rdit: ZP condemned violence against all politicians last night, in the strongest terms

You think Farage shouldn't get an apology because he's dodgy?

She was directly calling for innocent people to be murdered - including MPs and politicians.

Much as I dislike the man, he did not type "Mass deportation now. Set fire to all the fucking hotels full of the bastards for all I care. While you’re at it, take the treacherous government and politicians with them. I feel physically sick knowing what these families will now have to endure. If that makes me racist, so be it"

Strangely, Farage was very keen on her being able to make that statement, despite the specific reference to politicians being burned alive or deported. But he's all upset about a photo of a bloke wearing a t-shirt?

To say Farage is ‘dodgy’ is like saying the sun is warm. He is dangerous.

I might go so far as to say that if he signed a legally binding promise to make a million pound donation to the Green Party in the event of breaking a pledge to receive an apology graciously and then shut up about it, and if he would escrow the money until after the next GE, then he like anyone else deserves an apology. However belated. But it would take something of that magnitude.

Farage doesn’t treat any of us, or his constituents or fellow MPs, as equals. I am not terribly bothered by this very small degree of turnabout, because ZP has unequivocally condemned threats of violence against him.

Indeed.

Ok, to ask a slightly different question. You said you would have thought differently about the lack of apology if the t-shirt were about Kemi.

Do you think Zack would have apologised if it were Kemi?

I don’t think anyone but ZP knows the answer to that. I hope he would have.

I’ve said repeatedly I am not a fan, though I like aspects of the traditional Green agenda and think Caroline Lucas is wonderful.

Mr Polanski could have apologised to those who were offended, or if he had stirred up unpleasant memories, without apologising to Mr Farage.

Yes he could but he’s not very empathetic- to put it mildly!

Oh, see I absolutely 100% don't think he would have. He has way too much self-regard for that.

@poetryandwine The big problem for the Greens (joke name in 2026 surely?) is that he posted it in the first place. It’s never a mistake when a politician does something like this. They know it will be seen even if it’s only there for a short time. It’s a calculated action. A risky one but calculated. Of course you don’t apologise for what you meant to do and achieve! We seem to be getting appalling people being attracted to the extremes of the right and left in politics and none of them are what this country needs. Their politics is all about them. They are simply not good enough or decent enough to lead.

He is toxic

Absolutely 💯 agree. He's dangerous imo

He knew full well what he was doing. She was right to come down hard.

Yes and so did that manipulator Farage .

@mumumentalSo why play to Farage’s strengths? ZP knew what would happen. But he took the risk anyway. The idea of this now being a “Green” party is for the birds. It’s left of the left. People need to wake up and definitely young people do.

@noblegiraffe , @MeetMeOnTheCorner and others: I agree that ZP is hugely self regarding and that the Green Party has moved a long way from its origins, and the source of its appeal.

No political party is dangerous the way Reform is , and I am not referring to beliefs I find repulsive. I am referring to the party’s strongly suspected ties to an enemy state, Russia, and the proven use of Russian disinformation to help forward its aims.

Similarly it is wrong to say a politician is dangerous because you disagree with their ideas - we live in a country where they are allowed to express them, and we are allowed to disagree. Farage accepts money from convicted criminals, is being investigated for money laundering, and has a top deputy serving a 10 year sentence for taking Russian bribes. That is a different order of danger.

Again, the post only blew up because Farage blew it up after it was taken down. I have no doubt he would have found a way to gain sympathy votes from a belated apology. The country cannot afford that risk.

I don’t think ZP necessarily got into this mess deliberately, @MeetMeOnTheCorner . It could have happened as he said, because he may not be that bright.