Leader of the Green Party of England and Wales

The Leader of the Green Party of England and Wales is the most senior political figure within the Green Party of England and Wales. The role was introduced alongside that of Deputy Leader in 2008. Prior to this, the party's public spokespersons were known as "principal speakers". There were two principal speakers, one female and one male, who were elected annually at the Green Party's Autumn Conference and held no vote on the Green Party Executive (GPEx).

A referendum passed on 30 November 2007 that abolished the posts of principal speakers and a leader and deputy were elected at the party's next autumn conference on 5 September 2008.

Role and history The principal speakers performed the public and media roles undertaken by the leaders of more conventional political parties. Green parties often consider joint leadership of this kind to embody the widely held Green beliefs in consensus decision making and gender balance. It also symbolises their belief in the need for a society in which people are empowered and involved in making the decisions which affect them. In the party's Philosophical Basis, it states that the Green Party "reject[s] the hierarchical structure of leaders and followers, and, instead advocate[s] participatory politics" and it is "for this reason" that the Green Party has eschewed an individual leader.

There were six principal speakers in the UK Green Party until 1991, when changes introduced by the Green 2000 grouping reduced this to two and streamlined the organisation of the party.Wall, Derek, Weaving a Bower Against Endless Night: An Illustrated History of the Green Party, 1994 This left a system with which neither side in the 2007 leadership referendum was happy.

2007 Leadership referendum At the party's 2007 spring conference in Swansea, members voted to hold a cross-party referendum on whether the posts should be changed to leader and deputy leader (with the option for co-leaders if two candidates chose to run together and were gender balanced, in the event of which there would be no deputy leader). The new system would allow the leader and deputy (or co-leaders) to vote on GPEx and, rather than being elected annually (like the principal speakers), the posts would be elected every two years. Provisions for recalling the leader and deputy were articulated. Despite the controversial nature of this issue, many participants, such as Siân Berry, were struck by the how "constructive" the debate turned out to be.

On Friday 30 November 2007 the ballots were counted and members voted 73% to 27% in favour of the new leadership model, with a 48.3% turnout of Green Party members.

The 'Pro-Leader' side – Green Yes Supporters of the 'Green Yes' campaign for a yes vote in the referendum included the then-principal speaker Caroline Lucas MEP, Siân Berry, Darren Johnson AM (a Green member of the London Assembly), environmental commentator and Green member Mark Lynas, former principal speaker Jonathon Porritt, councillors from Lewisham, Brighton, Norwich, Leicester and Lancaster, and members of the Green Party Executive (GPEx), including Jim Killock (external communications officer), elections coordinator Peter Cranie and Khalid Hussenbux, the party's financial coordinator.Green Yes Website

The Green Yes campaign believed that the Green Party needed a leader to reach its potential and that, if the party did not reach its potential, it would be "selling-short our planet and everything on it". They suggested that the party's success has been too slow and that "a leader would help set direction, political focus and make sure the party gets the resources to grow". The campaign hoped that having a Leader would be "about empowering the party" and "about accountability", in that a Leader would "mean we can identify who to hold to account when things need changing". The group added that other Green Parties in the world had leaders and remained "just as Green as the rest of us".

Mark Lynas, in several editions of his New Statesman blog, further claimed that the name 'Principal Speaker' was not transparent to the public, that it wasted valuable time in explaining the system to the media and that it lacked credibility. Darren Johnson characterized the lack of single leader as "just a ridiculous barrier in terms of getting our really important message across".

The 'Anti-Leader' side – Green Empowerment Supporters of the 'Green Empowerment' campaign for a no vote in the leadership referendum included the then-Principal Speaker Derek Wall, Jenny Jones (a Green member of the London Assembly), Timothy Beaumont (Green member of the House of Lords), prominent human rights campaigner and Green member Peter Tatchell, Noel Lynch (London Green Party Coordinator and former London Assembly member), councillors from Scarborough, Lewisham, York, Norwich and Hackney, and members of the Green Party Executive (GPEx), including Campaigns Coordinator, Tim Summers, and Pete McAskie (Management Coordinator). Some members, like Matt Sellwood, while in favour of a Leader system in principle, were opposed to the current referendum because the term of reelection would be extended to two years.

Supporters of Green Empowerment wanted to "uphold the Green Party's long-standing commitment to non-hierarchical structures and 'grassroots' democracy" through "collective leadership". They believed that a single leader "would not only draw attention away from other speakers and the wider Party, but would bring with it risks that the other parties in this country are all too well aware of". The campaign focused on retaining gender balance in party structures, and avoiding the dilution of their radical policies. They focused on success under the Principal Speaker system, seen in the steady buildup of support from the low point of the 1992 general election to the situation at the time of the referendum, where the party has over 100 councilors along with two members of the European Parliament and two members of the London Assembly.

Derek Wall countered pro-leader arguments by stating that "if you are a clear speaker, there's no problem getting coverage and explaining the party's views." He was concerned by the history of past political parties that started off as being participatory until they adopted a single leader system in which the members became "puppets". Wall also opposed the reduction in numbers of Principal Speakers from six to two in 1992, as advocated by the Green 2000 group.

Party Leader era In September 2008 Caroline Lucas was elected as the party's first leader. Lucas was reelected in 2010 but chose not to stand in 2012, when Natalie Bennett was elected her successor. After Bennett stood down in 2016 Lucas returned as leader, this time sharing the position with Jonathan Bartley.

In 2018, Siân Berry replaced Lucas as co-leader, with Bartley continuing in the role.

In July 2021, Bartley announced he would be standing down as the party's co-leader at the end of the month, triggering the 2021 Green Party of England and Wales leadership election. Berry remained as acting leader, but decided not to stand in the leadership election due to her concerns over the party's message on trans rights. In her statement, she cited unspecified spokesperson appointments as being inconsistent with her pledge to support trans equality.

Leaders Principal Speakers (1990–1992) Prior to 1992 six principal speakers were elected annually. Sara Parkin Jim Berreen Andrew Simms Jean Lambert David Spaven Derek Wall

Principal Speakers (1992–2008) Year Male principal speaker Female principal speaker Feb–Sep 1992 Richard Lawson Jean Lambert 1992–1993 Mallen Baker 1993–1994 John Cornford Jan Clark 1994–1995 David Taylor 1995–1996 Peg Alexander 1996–1997 1997–1998 Mike Woodin - 1998–1999 Jean Lambert 1999–2000 Margaret Wright 2000–2001 2001–2002 Darren Johnson 2002–2003 2003–2004 Mike Woodin Caroline Lucas 2004–2005 Keith Taylor 2005–2006 2006–2007 Derek Wall Siân Berry 2007–2008 Caroline Lucas

Party leadership (2008–present) Leader(Birth–Death) Took office Left officeElectionCaroline Lucas(1960–)MEP for South East England (before 2010)MP for Brighton Pavilion (from 2010)5 September 20083 September 201220082010Natalie Bennett(1966–)3 September 20122 September 201620122014Caroline Lucas(1960–)MP for Brighton Pavilion Jonathan Bartley(1971–)2 September 20164 September 20182016 Siân Berry(1974–)Member of the London Assembly4 September 201831 July 202120182020Siân Berry served as Acting Leader during this interim, following the resignation of Jonathan Bartley.Carla Denyer(1985–)MP for Bristol Central (from 2024)Adrian Ramsay(1981–)MP for Waveney Valley (from 2024) 1 October 2021 2 September 20252021 Zack Polanski(1982–)Member of the London Assembly2 September 2025Incumbent2025 Timeline

Deputy Leadership (2008–present) Deputy Leader(Birth–Death) Took office Left officeElectionAdrian Ramsay(1981–)5 September 20083 September 201220082010Will Duckworth(1954–)3 September 20121 September 20142012Shahrar AliAmelia Womack(1985–)1 September 201431 August 20162014Amelia Womack(1985–)31 August 20167 September 2022201620182020Zack Polanski(1982–) 7 September 2022 2 September 20252022Mothin Ali(1982–)Rachel Millward(1977–)2 September 2025Incumbent2025

Election results 2025

CandidateVotes%Zack Polanski20,41184.6%Adrian Ramsay and Ellie Chowns3,70515.4%Re-open nominations1490.6%

2021

Candidate 1st round 2nd roundVotes%Votes% Carla Denyer and Adrian Ramsay 5,062 44 6,274 62 Tamsin Omond and Amelia Womack 3,465 30 3,902 38 Shahrar Ali 2,422 21 Martin Hemingway and Tina Rothery 342 3 Ashley Gunstock 212 2 Re-open Nominations 22 0.2

2020 Candidate1st round2nd roundVotes%Votes% Jonathan Bartley and Siân Berry3,00048.9%4,23857.5% Rosi Sexton1,97826.9%2,61835.5% Shahrar Ali1,73523.6% Re-open nominations450.6%

2018 CandidateVotes% Jonathan Bartley and Siân Berry 6,329 75.5 Shahrar Ali 1,466 17.5 Leslie Rowe 495 5.9 Re-open Nominations 89 1.1

2007 Female Principal SpeakerCandidateVotes% Caroline Lucas 1,190 78.0 Jenny Jones 335 22.0

Male Principal SpeakerCandidateVotes% Derek Wall 752 49.6 Darren Johnson 625 41.3 Ashley Gunstock 138 9.1

2006 The Female Principal Speaker post was won by Siân Berry, without a contest.Election results announced, Green Party of England and Wales, 24 November 2006

Male Principal Speaker electionCandidateVotes% Derek Wall 767 52.1 Keith Taylor 705 47.9

2004 The Female Principal Speaker post was won by Caroline Lucas, without a contest."Caroline Lucas & Keith Taylor returned as Greens' Principal Speakers", Brighton & Hove Green Party, 3 November 2004

Male Principal Speaker election"Caroline Lucas and Keith Taylor continue in party's top post", Green Party of England and Wales, 4 November 2004CandidateVotes% Keith Taylor 52 John Phillips 42

Chairs 1990: Mallen Baker, John Laker and Judy Maciejowska 1991: John Laker, John Norris and Sara Parkin 1992: Sara Parkin 1993: John Norris 1994: Jean Lambert 1995: John Morrissey 1996: Jenny Jones 1998: Alan Francis 2000: Penny Kemp 2003: Hugo Charlton 2006: Richard Mallender 2008: James Humphreys 2009: Jayne Forbes 2011: Jo Steranka 2012: Tim Dawes 2014: Richard Mallender 2016: Clare Phipps 2018: Liz Reason 2022: Jon Nott

Regional and national variations The leader of the Wales Green Party is Anthony Slaughter, who was elected as the party's leader in December 2018. Some regional and local groups have adopted a gender balance principle and emulated the Principal Speaker structure, including the LSE Students' Union Green Party, who have a Female and Male Co-Chair.

References

External links Main Co-Leaders page on the website of the Green Party of England and Wales

Historical Darren Johnson AM on BBC site explains why the Green party needs a Leader Siân Berry describes the debate and her preference for Co-leaders Caroline Lucas: The greens need a clear voice – and a leader Jenny Jones: A political party with a leader? – How 20th century