Zack Polanski has admitted that he failed to pay council tax while living on a houseboat in east London.
The Green Party leader apologised for the ‘unintentional mistake’ and said he had ‘immediately taken steps to pay any council tax’ he might owe.
Mr Polanski was registered on the electoral roll at a building in a marina where he kept the narrowboat, had post delivered there and had laundry collected from the boat.
The boat was recently advertised for sale for £100,000 – but the notice was mysteriously pulled after the Left-wing leader’s council tax arrangements were questioned last week.
Despite the ad referring to the narrowboat as his ‘amazing home’ over the past three years, Mr Polanski, 43, initially maintained he had not lived there permanently.
But the admission means that the Green Party lied to the Press when officials falsely claimed that Mr Polanski only stayed on the boat ‘occasionally’.
Government guidance clearly states that council tax is payable if a boat is a person’s ‘sole or main residence’.
But analysis by tax lawyer Dan Neidle, from Tax Policy Associates, found that Mr Polanski and his partner’s boat was not registered for council tax at the marina – despite another boat there previously being registered.
The Daily Mail has established that Zack Polanski was registered on the electoral roll at a building in a marina in east London where he kept a narrowboat
The narrowboat was recently advertised for sale for £100,000 – but the notice was pulled after the Green Party leader’s council tax arrangements were questioned
The boat and mooring would be rated as Band A, meaning Mr Polanski could owe a total sum of council tax for three years of about £4,000, according to the analysis.
The admission came just hours after the Green leader, who is also a member of the London Assembly, was reported to the City Hall sleaze watchdog over his tax arrangements.
The Conservative leader on the London Assembly reported Mr Polanski to City Hall’s monitoring officer over what has now emerged to be a failure to pay council tax.
The complaint, seen by the Daily Mail, calls for a formal investigation into ‘Mr Polanski’s residency arrangements, electoral registration, and potential council tax liability in relation to a narrowboat in east London’.
Neil Garratt, the leader of the City Hall Conservatives, said: ‘I have asked the City Hall authorities to formally investigate these claims, as the public has a right to know the truth.’
The narrowboat was recently advertised for sale, with the since-deleted advert posted saying it ‘has been our amazing home in the peace and quiet on the River Lea for three years’.
The ad stated that mooring fees are more than £750 per month and added: ‘We are moving to a house and so will sadly be leaving the gorgeous community behind.’
The complaint to the City Hall sleaze watchdog adds: ‘I wish to make a formal complaint concerning the conduct of London Assembly member Zack Polanski and request that you assess whether his conduct may amount to a breach of the Greater London Authority code of conduct…
The Green Party leader, who is a member of the London Assembly, has been reported to City Hall’s sleaze watchdog over his ‘residency arrangements, electoral registration, and potential council tax liability in relation to a narrowboat in east London’
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‘I believe these allegations are sufficiently serious to justify consideration under the GLA code of conduct and the Nolan Principles… in particular those relating to integrity, honesty, accountability, and leadership.’
It was unclear whether the investigation will still go ahead and what repercussions Mr Polanski might face.
A Green Party spokesman said: ‘Until relatively recently, Zack was living on a houseboat, which came with its own unique practical circumstances and considerations. He has immediately taken steps to pay any council tax he may be found to owe.
‘Zack apologies sincerely for the unintentional mistake.
‘For security reasons, we do not comment publicly on Zack’s address. There have recently been two serious incidents which have been reported to the police and are under investigation.’
The Greater London Authority (GLA) said a complaint has been received by the monitoring officer and will be considered in due course.
