Newly elected Councilor Green trades Range Rover for all-electric Porsche

One of Bristol’s newly elected Green Party councilors has come under fire for driving a Range Rover. But Cllr Abdul Malik said he sold the car before the recent local election campaign and has since invested in an all-electric Porsche Taycan.

Cllr Malik was voted in as a councilor in the Bristol City Council election on May 2 and now represents Ashley Ward along with two other Green councillors. Turnout was 43% and Cllr Malik received a total of 3,691 votes.

But the newly elected councilor has faced some criticism for owning a Range Rover, especially as he lives in Easton, very close to the center of Bristol. However, Cllr Malik said he has now sold the vehicle – although it took him three years to do so because “nobody wanted to buy it”.

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Speaking to Bristol Live, he said: “I understand it’s a big car, it’s a combustion engine, it’s diesel, it takes up a lot of space. We got a strange message and I get it, but at the end of the day, we can’t be judged by the cars we drive.

“I had ordered an electric car in 2022, I am very happy, now I have a Porsche Taycun which is fully electric. I installed an electric point, I have the only electric point on the whole road.

“The Range Rover is gone but it was in Auto Trader for three years believe it or not and nobody wanted to buy it. Nationwide, they are being broken into and stolen.

“My mum is disabled and I had a really bad back and it was an exceptionally good vehicle for a tall person with back problems. But it’s huge, you can’t park it anywhere in Easton, it’s a nightmare.”

Speaking about the criticism he has received about the vehicle, he said: “The Greens are from different walks of life, which is exactly what a political party should be.”

Cllr Malik joined the Green Party in 2021 after falling out with the local Labor government over their plans to pedestrianise St Marks Road. Despite his own opposition to the scheme, he described the Greens as “very open to listening”.

He said his current priorities as a councilor are centered on health and education. A successful campaign by former Labor councilor Amirah Cole helped secure a new dental surgery in St Pauls, which has since been inundated with patients.

New Green councilor says he wants to support local people who can’t get a GP appointment and make sure people are happy with local schools. He said he plans to stop by the Green Melon on Ashley Road a few times a week so locals can talk to him about any concerns.