Zack Polanski under investigation after questions over tax on East London houseboat

23 May 2026 , 20:39

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Zack Polanski under investigation after questions over tax on East London houseboat

Zack Polanski is facing a formal investigation over "unpaid" council tax on a narrowboat he was living on.

The Green Party leader admitted he may have underpaid council tax earlier this month following scrutiny over whether a houseboat moored in East London was his primary residence.

Mr. Polanski previously claimed that the houseboat was not eligible for council tax because he only stayed on it "occasionally" and rented a room at another address where the tax was included in the rent.

Neighbors and local businesses later revealed that the 72ft narrowboat was his primary residence.

It was later reported that there was an advertisement for the sale of the boat in which Mr. Polanski’s partner wrote: "We are moving to a house and so will sadly be leaving the gorgeous community behind."

Now, according to The Times, the left-wing leader could be facing a probe following complaints made to the Greater London Authority’s (GLA) monitoring officer by the Labour and Conservative parties.

The monitoring officer, who ensures assembly members behave ethically, will decide whether Polanski will be subject to a formal investigation.

In emails seen by the outlet, the standards officer said: "I am treating your correspondence as a formal complaint under the GLA’s standards regime.

"The monitoring officer is required to consider complaints about the conduct of elected members in accordance with the approved GLA member code of conduct complaints procedure.

"This will now be considered in accordance with the authority’s established procedures, including an initial assessment of whether an investigation is required."

Thomas Brown

Head of Investigations