Mark Blake left Labour in 2023 to become an independent but has now joined the Green Party, reports Grace Howarth, Local Democracy Reporter

Fortis Green Road and (inset) Mark Blake

The Greens have gained a second councillor in Haringey after a former independent and Labour member joined the party.

Mark Blake, who left Labour in 2023 to join the Independent Socialist Group on Haringey Council, announced today (Wednesday 25th) that he had joined the Green Party.

The move follows Ruairidh Paton’s historic by-election win in April when he became councillor for St Ann’s ward, as the first-ever elected Green Party member in the borough.

Speaking on his reasons to join Cllr Paton as a Green councillor, Cllr Blake, who represents Fortis Green ward, said: “My decision to join the Green Party has not been made overnight.

“A key driver has been my growing belief that the country needs a progressive alternative willing to counter the racist narrative driving us towards a far-right government.

“For me and many others in this country that outcome is unthinkable. I think a majority of people in Haringey and Fortis Green share that opinion.

“The Green Party’s policies align with my values and I look forward to working with Green councillor Ruairidh Paton to bring change to Haringey, whilst continuing to represent the good people of Fortis Green.”

First elected to the council in 2014 as a Labour councillor, Mark left nearly ten years later in October 2023 to sit with the newly-formed Independent Socialist Group.

Speaking on Cllr Blake’s move, Cllr Paton said he was feeling a lot of “elation and excitement” and was glad to have someone supporting him who brought with them “a lot of experience”.

Cllr Paton said: “For Haringey Greens to go from the first Green councillor in the history of the borough to the second one in the space of about two months is huge. I think it reflects a broader shift that we’re starting to see in London but also other parts of the country.

“More and more people are starting to pick up what the Greens are all about and understand that we’re more than just a party that fights for environmental justice.

“We have loads of policies that focus on the bread and butter issues that everyday working class people are facing such as the cost-of-living crisis, the housing crisis, the private rented sector, or poor council housing.

“I think Mark is a really great example of somebody who is passionate about those issues and after a period of consideration he has realised and decided that actually he was best able to pursue and tackle those issues with us in the Green Party.”

The Independent Socialist Group declined to comment.

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