Labour councillor defects to the Greens

Newcastle upon Tyne city councillor Alistair Chisholm has resigned from the city’s ruling Labour Party to join the Greens. And he’s done so with a blast at Keir Starmer’s collusion in Israel’s genocide and Labour’s war on the vulnerable in the UK. His move means the Green party now has four members on the council, which is run by Labour despite no party having a majority, with Labour holding 36 of 78 seats.

From Labour to Greens

In his resignation statement, Chisholm said that he had found a “sense of honesty and hope” in the Greens that was absent from a Labour party that has abdicated its proper politics:

Residents tell me they feel let down by Labour — and I can’t tell them they’re wrong. The attack on disability benefits, the cut to the winter fuel allowance and the government’s failure to show moral leadership on Gaza have caused real distress. I’ve tried for a long time to make things work inside Labour, but the party has become increasingly centralised and less willing to speak plainly about the problems people are facing.

Meanwhile, the housing crisis in our city and across the country is getting worse. Too many residents are living in damp or overcrowded homes, young people can’t find secure places to live, and our environment is declining. I don’t want to keep pretending everything is fine when it isn’t.

What I’ve found in the Green Party is a sense of honesty and hope that has been missing from national politics for a long time. The Greens’ starting point is fairness. They talk openly about the housing emergency, the cost of living crisis, the strain on young and older people alike, and the need to clean up our rivers and tackle the wider climate crisis. And instead of blaming migrants, disabled people and other scapegoats, they focus on fixing what’s actually broken. The energy and openness I’ve seen from Green members — especially in recent weeks inspired by Zack Polanski’s leadership — is exactly the kind of politics we need.

Politics isn’t a solo act. You need collaboration and collective action to make real change. The Green Party works that way: listening, debating, organising from the community up. That’s the team I want to be part of, and I believe it’s the best way I can continue serving Ouseburn.

‘More free to speak up fully’

Green councillors welcomed Chisholm to the party. Nick Hartley said:

It’s great news for residents to see Alistair joining the Green Party. Away from Labour, he is more free to
speak up fully for Ouseburn. This means we now have representation in four wards across Newcastle. As
more and more voters like what they see of Greens working hard in their communities, there is a strong
opportunity to elect many more Greens in May’s all out council elections.

South Jesmond councillor Dr Sarah Peters pointed to the increasing number of Labour councillors across the UK who are making the same decision as Chisholm to reflect the disgust and sense of betrayal of their residents:

In the summer we saw many former Labour voters in Jesmond and Sandyford switch their support to help
elect me as their Councillor. During the by-election, many residents told me they felt betrayed by this
Labour Government and the ineffective leadership Labour have provided locally. Since then, under Zack
Polanski’s leadership we’ve seen thousands of people up and down the country inspired to join the Green
Party. It’s no wonder that Councillors who are equally frustrated by the behaviour of Labour’s leaders are
making a similar choice.

Featured image via Newcastle Green Party