Zack Polanski accused of sharing image calling for Reform UK leader's decapitation

Nigel Farage has reported the Green Party leader, Zack Polanski, to the Metropolitan Police, accusing him of incitement to murder after Mr Polanski shared an image on Instagram depicting an activist wearing a T-shirt bearing a guillotine motif and text that appeared to call for the Reform UK leader's decapitation. The picture, which showed a bearded individual in a black top emblazoned with a guillotine and the words "we're only making plans for Nigel" – a reference to the 1979 XTC song – was posted on Mr Polanski's Instagram account but deleted yesterday after its contents were "brought to his attention", according to a Green Party spokesman. Mr Polanski, who has insisted he "does not support this type of dangerous message", now faces a police investigation after Mr Farage formally referred the matter to Scotland Yard, with the Reform leader asserting that if he had posted anything similarly inciteful, he "would expect to be arrested, and so should Polanski".

The incident has intensified the already fraught political climate following the murder of Ann Widdecombe, the Reform UK party spokeswoman, at her home earlier this month, an event that has heightened security concerns for public figures. Joshua Kerry, 28, has been charged with one count of murder over Ms Widdecombe's death, and Mr Farage has previously disclosed that he receives some 300 threats per month, having pushed for enhanced security for his party's politicians. Reform UK's chairman, Zia Yusuf, condemned the Instagram post as "incitement to murder" and demanded it be treated as such by the police, while Robert Jenrick, the shadow home secretary and a Reform MP, described those responsible as "sick" and noted the irony of Mr Polanski's frequent calls for kindness and compassion. "This went out to hundreds of thousands of followers," Mr Jenrick added, underscoring the potential reach of the offending material.

A Green Party spokesman moved to distance the party leadership from the image, explaining that Mr Polanski had accepted a request to collaborate on a post containing several images after attending a public event. "Once this image was brought to his attention he immediately unshared the post," the spokesman said. "He unequivocally does not support this type of dangerous message." The Metropolitan Police confirmed that a third-party report had been received on the morning of 27 July relating to an image shared on social media, adding: "We take reports of this nature extremely seriously, and officers are conducting enquiries into the matter." No arrests have been made in connection with the post, and the investigation is understood to be at an early stage.

The clash comes at a time of heightened political tensions, with the Green Party experiencing a decline in polling support under the Labour government of Prime Minister Andy Burnham, haemorrhaging votes to Labour as the administration signals a leftward shift. Mr Polanski has previously been at odds with the Metropolitan Police, with Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley publicly rebuking him in April after the Green leader suggested the force had been too heavy-handed in arresting a suspect in the Golders Green terror attack; Sir Mark wrote a letter expressing his disappointment at what he termed "inaccurate and misinformed commentary". That earlier exchange, combined with the current allegations, has placed Mr Polanski's judgment under renewed scrutiny, while Reform UK has seized on the incident to highlight what it portrays as a culture of intolerance among its political opponents. The outcome of the police investigation into the Instagram post will be closely watched, as will its implications for the already strained relations between the two parties and the broader question of political discourse and public safety in an increasingly volatile environment.