Green Party leader Zack Polanski declined to apologise to Reform UK leader Nigel Farage during an appearance on BBC Newsnight, despite acknowledging that a controversial social media collaboration had been a mistake.
Speaking to presenter Victoria Derbyshire, Polanski said that had the post been made deliberately he would have apologised, but maintained that the incident resulted from an error rather than intent.
"If I'd done it deliberately I'd be apologising, but because this was a mistake... the important thing is that I point out it's a mistake."
He added that he condemned political violence and said he would improve how he manages his social media activity.
"I condemn political violence... and crucially I make a commitment to be better on my social media."
Refuses to Apologise
When asked directly whether he wished to apologise to Nigel Farage, Polanski replied:
"No."
He argued that the situation had been amplified after Mr Farage shared the post on social media.
According to Polanski, the original collaboration had attracted fewer than 1,000 likes before Mr Farage reposted it.
He claimed that the repost cropped the original image in a way that suggested he had personally published it, describing that as "fundamentally dishonest".
Polanski said the controversy had since reached millions of people.
Police Complaint
During the interview, Polanski also criticised the decision to report the matter to police.
He said he accepted responsibility for accepting the collaboration and reiterated that political violence should always be condemned.
However, he argued that describing the post as incitement to murder had escalated the situation.
"The reporting to the police, the ramping up of the language to say this is incitement to murder me feels like that's also putting me in a dangerous spot."
Background
The interview follows controversy surrounding a social media collaboration accepted by Polanski that prompted criticism from political opponents and led to calls for an apology.
While acknowledging mistakes over the post itself, Polanski maintained during his Newsnight appearance that he would not apologise to Nigel Farage.
The wider political debate surrounding the incident is likely to continue as the Green Party leadership contest progresses.
Related Coverage
Previous story: Met Police Assess Social Media Report After Zack Polanski Instagram Post Criticised by Reform UK