Green Party leader Zack Polanski has said he will not overturn a motion passed by party members that declared Zionism to be racist.
Speaking to Laura Kuenssberg on Sunday, Polanski said he would like to amend the motion. However, it will remain party policy until 2028. He also rejected claims that the motion was controversial.
What the motion says
The motion was passed at the party's conference earlier this month. It describes Zionism as an ideology that supports "an ethnonationalist Jewish state in historic Palestine to the exclusion and/or domination of the non-Jewish population".
The motion was passed by 1,022 votes to 813. The party has about 230,000 members.
Backlash and divisions
The motion divided the party. It also drew strong criticism from MPs, Jewish campaigners, the government and the European Green movement.
The row overshadowed the final days of Polanski's campaign in the Holborn and St Pancras by-election. The Greens came second to Labour in the contest. The fallout also raised questions about his leadership.
Polanski faced criticism for not voting on the motion. He has said he would not have backed it without amendments.
Plans for change
Polanski said he does not intend to overturn the motion. "At the first available opportunity, I do want to amend it," he said. "I want to move away from one state, towards saying that Israelis and Palestinians should decide that future for themselves."
He said the change cannot be made sooner because party rules do not allow it. A decision taken at conference becomes party policy for two years.
Kuenssberg asked whether he would change the rules as leader. Polanski said he respects the democratic will of party members.
Green MPs, including Ellie Chowns, have called for the party's member-led decision-making process to be reviewed. They point to the low number of members who took part in the vote.
