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Labour-Green coalition in Sheffield collapses amid antisemitism row
'We cannot, in good faith, continue our partnership with a group where such blatant antisemitism is not adequately challenged,' says City Council leader Fran Belbin
The Labour-Green power-sharing agreement in Sheffield has collapsed, despite last-minute negotiations to salvage the partnership, as City Council leader Fran Belbin accused Zack Polanski’s party of failing to challenge “blatant antisemitism.”
The turmoil escalated when the national Labour Party issued an ultimatum to local Green Party representatives: disown the “Zionism is racism” policy or risk the collapse of coalition agreements.
Last week, Belbin told a meeting of the local authority that she expected the two parties to issue a joint statement in the coming days, saying, “We will be able to continue this administration,” following what she described as “last-minute talks.”
However, Belbin said that any trust had now broken down as a result of Facebook posts by Green councillor Mustafa Ahmed, made after the October 7th attacks in 2023.
In one post, Ahmed claimed that Muslims who condemned the attacks would have to “bear the shame of supporting the Jews.”
Additional damaging posts by Cllr Ahmed are reported to have surfaced in 2025.
“Throughout that period, Cllr Ahmed was a Green Party candidate, but his behaviour appears to have gone unchecked,” Belbin wrote in a statement published on Monday.
She confirmed: “Despite the very best efforts and intentions of the Sheffield Labour Party, it is clear that the joint administration with the Green Party in Sheffield must now come to an end. We cannot, in good faith, continue our partnership with a group where such blatant antisemitism is not adequately challenged.”
In a statement, Sheffield Green Party said: “On Sunday, it became clear that the goalposts were being moved again. Then, on Monday, Coun Belbin produced a new version of the Joint Statement, written by the Labour Party’s NEC.”
“This was very disappointing, as the new statement did not reflect the constructive and thoughtful discussions between local groups,” the Green Party added.
“Despite this, the Green Group agreed to continue working together on a form of words that would reflect shared principles.”
The statement continued: “It is now clear that the national Labour Party vetoed the power-sharing arrangement.”
“Sheffield Greens refuse to submit to national Labour and will continue to speak out against violations of human rights and international law and the complicity of the Labour government.”
Sheffield is one of a number of councils where leadership arrangements have been thrown into chaos after the Green Party’s conference vote led Labour to pull out of agreements in 11 local authorities.
The row began after members at the Green Party’s conference passed an anti-Zionist motion, drawing condemnation from political opponents and the Board of Deputies of British Jews.
The motion declared the Greens to be an “anti-Zionist party” and stated in its policy that Zionism—the movement to develop and protect a Jewish state in Israel—would be “treated as any other form of racism.”
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