'This is disgusting': Kemi Badenoch 'appalled' and 'embarrassed' by Green Party Zionism vote

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Play Mute Current Time 0:00 / Duration 0:00 Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently playing live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 1x Playback Rate Picture-in-Picture Fullscreen Tory leader Kemi Badenoch sits down with ITV Political Editor Robert Peston – discussing the Green Party Zionism vote row, the triple lock on pensions and controversial comments made by a shadow Home Office minister Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch has told ITV News' Political Editor, Robert Peston she thinks the Green Party is "full of a lot of people who are antisemites and are quite frankly not okay". Badenoch said she was "appalled" by a vote at the Green Party conference over the weekend, in which members defined Zionism as racism. "This is disgusting. These are not people whose opinions we should be respecting. These are people who we should be calling out as being shameful," she said. The leader of the opposition said she was "embarrassed that a political party in this country would actually do something like that". Green Party leader Zack Polanski, who has since been banned from entering Israel, did not take part in a vote on the controversial motion, having left the conference after his speech on Friday to campaign for this Thursday's Holborn and St Pancras by-election. Zack Polanski left Green Party conference after his speech on Friday to campaign in the Holborn and St Pancras by-election Credit: PA In a statement last night, Polanski said: “Antisemitism and criticism of the Israeli state are, and must always be, completely distinct – blurring the line between the two is not only wrong but antisemitic, and makes Jewish people less safe. "It’s our role as a movement for justice to protect both the rights of Palestinians and our Jewish communities here in the UK. "As leader I will not accept any exclusion, or refusal to engage with anyone, because of the religious or communal body they are part of." The vote has exposed divisions within the party as four of its five MPs – Ellie Chowns, Sian Berry and ex-leaders Adrian Ramsay and Carla Denyer – came out to publicly reject the motion. Badenoch reiterated her support for the state of Israel and finding a two-state solution. In response to Badenoch's remarks, a Green Party spokesperson said: "'These are not people whose opinions we should be respecting' perfectly describes the Conservative Party." Moving on to pensions, the opposition leader confirmed to ITV News that the Conservatives would keep the triple lock – a safeguard that guarantees regular rises of the state pension. "The triple lock is our policy. The choice we are making is focusing on people who can work but don't work," Badenoch said. This comes after the Prime Minister Andy Burnham said his plans for a social care overhaul would be paid for by changes to the pensions triple lock – which currently guarantees that pensions will rise in line with inflation, 2.5% or average earnings, whichever is the largest increase. Kemi Badenoch spoke to ITV News at Conservative Party conference in Birmingham Credit: PA When challenged on some of her expensive spending commitments such as a new missile defence system and funded childcare for parents earning over £100,000, Badenoch insisted her plans were costed. "The difference between us and other parties is that I set out my plans. Other parties don't say anything because they're hoping just to sneak in. I'm very happy to be challenged," she said. Badenoch was also asked how she responds to comments made by a shadow Conservative Home Office minister, Blake Stephenson at a fringe even at the Conservative Party conference. Stephenson suggested there are “no-go zones” in Luton where “white people won’t go”. Insisting that she stands by Stephenson, the Conservative leader said: "If Blake Stephenson is saying there are no-go zones, he will have a reason for that and I'm sure that he can explain it. So I'm very happy to stand by him". Subscribe free to our weekly newsletter for exclusive and original coverage from ITV News. Direct to your inbox every Friday morning. The Mid-Bedfordshire MP also said Luton was “a very dangerous place” where some communities “live in ghettos”. Badenoch was also asked if she agreed with the PM that alienating an important security and economic partner like Abu Dhabi, the owners of Manchester City, would be bad for this country, despite its football club recently being found guilty of financial rule breaches. "The UAE are our allies," Badenoch said. "As Trade Secretary, I did a lot of work with them. I think it is important that we maintain good relationships. "But people still have to follow the rules, and I do not endorse rule breaking. You know, I know people think I might be a bit headmistressy about that, but where rules are broken, then there need to be consequences. Greens back ‘Zionism is racism’ policy despite opposition from senior figures Tories share plans for tax cuts and major deregulation in conference speech "I'm not a football expert. I've never pretended to be. It's Andy Burnham who goes around pretending to be 'Mr Football'. "I don't know why he said what he said on those comments, but let's take a look and see what's happened". On Tuesday, the Conservatives further announced that they would halve the employers National Insurance tax- what they are terming the "Jobs Tax"- on youth jobs from 15% to 7.5% for people aged 21 to 24. The Tories suggest that halving the rate for 21-24 year olds would let a business keep an average of £1,545 for every young worker, which would support businesses to create more jobs. This comes ahead of Badenoch's leader speech at Conservative Party conference in Birmingham on Wednesday at midday, where more policy announcements are expected. From Westminster to Washington DC - our political experts are across all the latest key talking points. Listen to the latest episode below...