FIVE Labour councillors have defected to the Greens in the north-west London borough of Brent.

The move prompted Green Party leader Zack Polanski to claim his party was on course to “bury” Labour at next year’s local elections.

Four of the five had been barred by Labour from standing for re-election next year, claiming they did not meet the standards required for local councillors.

The councillors said in a joint statement: ”We’ve watched as on every issue this government goes further away from the founding Labour Party principles of democracy, social justice and equality.

“We have a huge amount of respect for many of our hard-working Labour colleagues and party members in Brent, but we don’t feel that the party represents the values that we hold any longer.”

Mr Polanski said that Labour is “broken, and I think we’re ready to bury them.

“I think the real challenge really is, how do we make sure people don’t pick up on the politics of hate and division that Reform are offering.”

The councillors are former cabinet member Harbi Farah, former whip Iman Ahmadi-Moghaddam, and Mary Mitchell, Tony Ethapemi, and Erica Gbajumo.

Mr Polanski said the Greens were targeting advances in London boroughs like Brent, Hackney, Lewisham and Newham — all Labour strongholds — as well as Manchester, Birmingham and rural areas.

A London Labour spokesperson said: “The Labour Party operates rigorous and transparent selection processes and maintains the highest standards for its candidates.

“Mr Polanski’s approach suggests a far lower bar for entry, raising serious questions about the level of scrutiny and judgement applied in the Green Party.”