Green Party leader Zack Polanski has declined to apologise to Nigel Farage after sharing an Instagram image showing a man in a T-shirt reading “We’re only making plans for Nigel” above a guillotine, insisting the post was an honest mistake rather than a deliberate act.
Zack Polanski has refused to apologise to Nigel Farage over a social media image he described as an “inadvertent mistake,” despite Reform UK calling for his arrest. The Green Party leader shared a post on Instagram featuring a man wearing a T-shirt with the slogan “We’re only making plans for Nigel” above an image of a guillotine. Farage’s party has said it reported the matter to police, though Polanski told BBC Newsnight he had not been contacted by officers and would be happy to cooperate if they wished to speak with him.
How the post came about
Polanski said the image formed part of a wider Instagram collaboration containing around 20 pictures, which he accepted without carefully reviewing each one. “This was not my post, it was a collaboration from a photographer. It had 20 images and I just didn’t look carefully enough and I accepted it,” he said. He admitted he “didn’t pay enough attention to the t-shirt” and described himself as “horrified” by what he called its “dangerous message.”
According to Polanski, he removed himself from the collaboration as soon as the image was brought to his attention. “As soon as I was aware of what happened, I unaccepted it and took it down. I think it’s quite obvious that I’ve not done anything wrong other than making an inadvertent mistake,” he said.
Why he won’t apologise
Despite acknowledging the error, Polanski maintained he would not be apologising to Farage personally, drawing a distinction between an accidental mistake and a deliberate act. “If I’d done it deliberately, I’d be apologising,” he said. “But because this was a mistake, I think the important thing is that I point out it’s a mistake. I also make sure that I condemn political violence, and also crucially, I make a commitment to be better on my social media.”
He went on to argue that politicians carry a responsibility not to put others at risk through their own rhetoric, suggesting Farage had done so on previous occasions. “If Nigel Farage wants to apologise for all the times that he’s put other people in danger, then I’ll be happy to make an apology,” Polanski said.
During the interview, he said the episode had made him more conscious of the need to review content carefully before accepting future social media collaborations, and reiterated that he condemns political violence in all its forms.
Police involvement and Reform UK’s response
Reform UK has said it reported the image to police, arguing that it amounted to encouragement of violence against its leader. However, Polanski said officers had not yet made contact with him regarding the complaint, adding that he remained willing to cooperate fully should they wish to discuss the matter. The Green Party maintains that the image was shared unintentionally and was removed as soon as Polanski became aware of its content.
