The Polish trade union famous for helping to bring down Warsaw’s Communist regime has now turned its fire against the EU’s green agenda.

Solidarność (Solidarity) was founded in 1980 by trade unionists and workers at the Lenin Shipyard in Gdańsk, Poland. At its peak in 1981, one-third of working-age Poles were members – a total of roughly 10million people. What began as a campaign for workers’ rights soon transformed into a broad, anti-authoritarian social movement. Solidarity’s acts of civil resistance, supported financially by the Vatican and the United States, are widely recognised as having played a significant role in the collapse of Poland’s Communist government in 1989.

Solidarity may not be as significant a force as it once was, but the union is still alive and kicking. With roughly 500,000 registered trade unionists, it remains the largest trade union in Poland. More importantly, Solidarity still has big ambitions for its members. Look no further than its recent campaign against the European Union’s Net Zero agenda.

Earlier this month, the Solidarity farmers’ union held a mass demonstration in Warsaw against the European Green Deal. This is a set of EU policy initiatives designed to make the bloc carbon neutral by 2050. One of its main targets is Europe’s agricultural sector. Solidarity rightly considers these measures anti-worker, anti-development and undemocratic.