Hugely brave of Andy Carroll to go public with the details of how he was sexually assaulted by Kevin Adams in 2019.

If it can happen to a famous, wealthy, robust 6’4” professional footballer it can happen to men and boys who would be considered to be far more vulnerable.

Last year I called on the Government to stop classifying male-on-male crimes like these as “crimes considered to be violence against women and girls” and to create a strategy for tackling sexual violence and abuse against men and boys.

I hope Andy Carroll’s courage in speaking up can highlight how any man can become a victim.

BREAKING: Bridget Phillipson responds on behalf of Labour to the racist and antisemitic motion today. It’s strong and she doesn’t mince her words to be fair.

Bridget Phillipson MP, Chair of the Labour Party, and Minister for Women and Equalities, responds to the Green Party’s vote on Zionism at the Green Party Conference, said:

“It is shameful to vote against a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine and to condemn the vast majority of British Jews and Jews around the world as racist for supporting Israel’s right to exist. It is fundamentally wrong and the leadership of the Green Party must make clear that this will not be their position moving forwards.

“The Labour Party has always been clear that criticism of the policies of the Israeli Government is not antisemitic, and the Labour government has condemned Israel’s actions in Gaza and the West Bank. But today’s vote at the Green Party Conference crosses a line and should be condemned across the political spectrum.

“This vote underlines how important it was that we changed the Labour Party from top to bottom and ripped out the scourge of antisemitism from within the party.

"The Labour Party and the Labour Government will continue working every day to ensure our Jewish communities are safe, feel safe and have their rights upheld, as well as making sure we rid our society of antisemitism once and for all.”

Polanski proposed supported two amendments to the "Zionism is racism" motion and both of them were struck down. They are difficult to find so I thought I would dig them out and generate discussion out of them. You can't really look at the direction that the Green Party is now heading without looking at what they specifically voted to exclude from the bill.

To summarise (but I encourage you to read them for yourselves), A3 is about protecting Jewish Green members and their religious freedoms from discrimination. A1 is a lot longer and essentially waters down the motion's proposal for a one-state solution while emphasising the importance of a non-violent resolution. Both were struck down. The striking down of one of these amendments I cannot possibly understand. I leave it to you to guess which.

A3: This amendment is to mitigate the possibility that this motion could be used to achieve indirect discrimination against practising Jews.

Add after actions 2. ADD

This motion shall not be used to pressure, proscribe or discipline members based on affiliation with Jewish community institutions, such as synagogues, community centres or denominational groups, that describe themselves as Zionist or used to discipline or sanction Jewish members for expressing views that would be non-sanctionable if expressed by non-Jewish members (such as support for a binational state, or two-state solution).

Moving onto A1, it proposed replacing the below paragraph

1. Following from Motion E05, which affirmed that Israel is an apartheid State committing genocide, and Motion E07 supporting reparations and accountability, the Green Party supports the establishment of a single democratic Palestinian State in all of historic Palestine with Jerusalem as its capital, equal rights for all, and the right of return for Palestinians and their descendants

With all of the below:

Following from Motion E05 (Autumn 2024) which affirmed that Israel is an apartheid State committing genocide, and Motion E07 (Autumn 2025) supporting reparations and accountability, the Green Party recognises that the current "Two State Solution" and abuses of the Israeli State against Palestinians cannot be allowed to continue. In its place, the Green Party supports a reparative, democratic and just process to establish, in all of historic Palestine, a lasting settlement granting equal rights for all, the right of return for Palestinians and their descendants, and the abolition of settler colonialism and apartheid. The Green Party believes that the form and process of this settlement should be shaped and determined by Palestinians themselves however they see fit, based on the principle of Palestinian self-determination.

This amendment maintains the spirit of A03, its opposition to settler colonialism and apartheid, and its commitment to equal rights for all and the right of return, but brings it in line with the following GPEW core values and philosophical bases by re-emphasising the autonomy of Palestinians to self-determine their own future settlement rather than imposing a single state solution:

CV 8: "We emphasise democratic participation and accountability by ensuring that decisions are taken at the closest practical level to those affected by them."

CV 9: "We look for non-violent solutions to conflict situations, which take into account the interests of minorities and future generations in order to achieve lasting settlements."

PB 302: "Nothing should be decided at a higher [ie less local] level if it can be decided at a lower [ie more local] one"

PB 306: "The Green Party promotes non-violent solutions to conflict situations. The interests of the minority and of future generations must be included in non-violent processes of conflict resolution in order to achieve lasting settlements."

Source (amendments A1 & A3 are downloadable in that link)