Zack Polanski registered on electoral roll at marina but refuses to say where he pays council tax amid ‘houseboat’ riddle

Zack Polanski faced calls last night to answer questions about where he should pay his council tax.

The Daily Mail found that the Green Party leader was registered on the electoral register at a building at a marina in east London where he keeps a narrowboat.

Mr. Polanski delivered mail to the same marina building and regularly collected laundry from the canal barge he shared with his partner, Richie Bryan, for several years.

The narrowboat was recently announced for sale for £100,000 but that announcement was withdrawn after Mr Polanski’s council tax arrangements were questioned this week.

Mr Polanski, 43, claims Mr Bryan only stayed on the boat occasionally, despite the ad calling it their “wonderful home” for the past three years.

The Greens last night refused to answer questions about where Zack lived last year and whether he paid council tax on the boat, saying only: ‘What Zack pays council tax is included in the rent.’

But the Conservatives will write to the Green leader today, demanding he answer ‘public interest questions about your council tax payments’.

Conservative Party leader Kevin Hollinrake said: ‘The Green Party’s statements appear contradictory and there are questions about whether council tax is being paid at the correct level.’

The narrowboat was recently announced for sale for £100,000, but the announcement was withdrawn after the Green Party leader questioned the council’s tax arrangements this week.

Government guidance suggests council tax is payable if the boat is a person’s ‘sole or main residence’ and is therefore ‘considered a residence’.

Public records show that Mr. Polanski and Mr. Bryan were registered on the electoral roll in 2025 at an address at the marina where the narrowboat was kept. His partner was also there in 2024.

The Lee Valley Authority, which owns the address, confirmed last night that the Green leader had not rented the waterside bungalow. The officer said a member of staff moved into the property in July 2025 and discovered a ‘handful’ of bed owners were ‘using the address for post’.

Voter rolls show ten people, including Mr. Polanski, were registered there in 2025.

If staff living at the address contacted the municipality to register on the electoral roll, everyone else was removed, the official said.

The narrowboat was recently advertised for sale and the ad, which has since been deleted, said ‘for three years it has been our wonderful home in the peace and quiet of the River Lea’.

The advert, seen by the Daily Mail, said mooring fees were more than £750 a month and added: ‘We are moving into a house and so will sadly be leaving this wonderful community behind.’

Tax expert Dan Neidle, of Tax Policy Associates, said: ‘If what it says here is true, it looks like he should have been paying council tax.’

Mr Polanski, 43, claims Mr Bryan has only stayed on the boat occasionally, despite the ad calling it their ‘wonderful home’ for the past three years

The marina where the narrowboat is located is for recreational mooring purposes only and the boats are held there under ‘non-residential agreements’ and owners are required to prove their home address.

Meanwhile, a local laundromat owner said he has been collecting Mr. Polanski and Mr. Bryan’s laundry from their narrowboat every two to three weeks for the past three years.

Mr Polanski recently told The Sunday Times that he and Mr Bryan rented a flat in Hackney.

The Green leader declares in his register of interests for the London Assembly that he or his partner is ‘anchored in London’, ‘singly or jointly’.

A Green Party spokesman said: ‘Zack’s council tax is included in the rent he pays to his landlord. For security reasons we are not commenting on Zack’s residential arrangements.’

They added that Mr. Polanski’s main residence was the place he rented and that the marina was for recreational mooring, so he could only come there occasionally.