Three Labour Councillors Quit in East London to Join Greens Over Gaza and Policy Disputes

Three Labour councillors in east London have quit the party and joined the Greens, accusing Sir Keir Starmer’s leadership of “losing its moral compass.”

The councillors — Moin Quadri, Victoria Hornby, and Faruk Choudhury from Barking and Dagenham — said they could no longer remain in a party that had, in their words, “failed to take a principled stance on Gaza,” adopted “divisive anti-immigration rhetoric,” and backed “cuts leaving vulnerable families without support.” Their defection marks the first political opposition to Labour in the borough for more than a decade.

In a joint statement, the group said they made the move out of a duty to serve residents with “honesty, fairness, and courage.” They criticised Labour locally for presiding over declining services, unsafe roads, poor housing, unreliable waste collection, and rising crime and antisocial behaviour. Nationally, they argued the party had “turned its back on the people it claims to represent.”

Their departure comes as Labour faces growing challenges in London. Earlier this year, councillors in Lewisham and Haringey also defected to the Greens, citing the party’s shift to the right under Starmer. Labour additionally suffered a by-election loss in Camden’s West Hampstead ward on August 28, where the Liberal Democrats took the seat amid anger at Labour’s handling of the Gaza conflict.

London Labour has been approached for comment.