GLA considering investigation into Zack Polanski over houseboat council tax

Zack Polanski admitted he may have failed to pay the correct council tax while living on a houseboat in London. Questions were raised about whether the houseboat was his primary residence. His party described the issue as an unintentional mistake and said he took steps to pay any tax owed. Anna Turley, chair of the Labour party, wrote to the Greater London Authority monitoring officer requesting an investigation into whether Polanski breached standards as an elected member. The monitoring officer is considering whether to treat the correspondence as a formal complaint under the GLA standards regime. The process includes an initial assessment, a written response window of seven to 10 days, consultation with two independent people, and a final decision on whether an investigation is required. Sanctions can include minor outcomes such as meetings or apologies.

"London assembly officials are weighing up whether to launch an investigation into Zack Polanski after he admitted he may have failed to pay the correct council tax while living on a houseboat in the capital. The Green party leader has faced questions over whether the houseboat, moored in east London, was his primary residence. A spokesperson for his party had described the situation as an unintentional mistake and said Polanski had immediately taken steps to pay any tax owed."

"Last week, Anna Turley, the chair of the Labour party, wrote to the Greater London authority (GLA) monitoring officer to call for an investigation into Polanski, as an elected member of that body, over whether he had breached the standards to which he was bound. The monitoring officer is understood to be considering whether to launch an investigation into the issue. In email correspondence reported by the Times, they 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. When a formal complaint is made, the subject of the complaint has seven to 10 days to respond in writing. After two independent people outside the GLA, which comprises the mayor of London and the 25 London assembly members, are consulted and provide advice, the monitoring officer will make a decision."

"Assembly members can face sanctions if found to be in breach of ethics rules, though these are often minor and can result in a meeting or apology. The Green party had told the Times that Polanski rented a room at another address where council tax was included in the rent and stayed on the boat only"

Read at www.theguardian.com