London assembly officials are currently pondering what many would consider an uncomfortable question: does a Green party leader who may have underpaid council tax on his houseboat deserve an official investigation? The answer, apparently, is "maybe," which is bureaucrat-speak for "we're thinking about it."

Zack Polanski, the Green party leader, has admitted he might have failed to pay the correct council tax while living on a houseboat moored in east London. His party has described this as an "unintentional mistake," which is the political equivalent of a shrug emoji, and said he has "immediately taken steps" to pay any tax owed.

Labour party chair Anna Turley, clearly not one to let a nautical tax issue sail by unnoticed, wrote to the Greater London Authority (GLA) monitoring officer last week demanding an investigation into whether Polanski breached the standards he's bound to as an elected member. The monitoring officer, in an email reported by the Times, confirmed they are treating this as a formal complaint and will now consider it under the GLA's established procedures, which apparently include an initial assessment of whether an investigation is even needed.

Under the rules, once a formal complaint is made, the accused gets seven to 10 days to respond in writing. After consulting two independent people outside the GLA (the mayor of London plus 25 assembly members), the monitoring officer will make a decision. If found in breach, assembly members can face sanctions, though these are often minor and might result in something as thrilling as a meeting or an apology.

The Green party told the Times that Polanski rented a room at another address where council tax was included and only stayed on the boat "occasionally." Government guidance says a person may be liable for council tax on a boat if it's their "sole or main" residence. The Times also helpfully uncovered an advertisement for the boat's sale, in which Polanski's partner wrote: "We are moving to a house and so will sadly be leaving the gorgeous community behind." This sounds less like an occasional visitor and more like someone packing up the floating home.

Waltham Forest council has confirmed it launched its own investigation into whether any council tax was owed on the mooring. Meanwhile, Turley's letter cited section 106 of the Local Government Finance Act 1992, which requires public office holders who are two months or more in arrears on council tax to declare that fact at meetings and prohibits them from voting on related matters.

A Green party spokesperson insisted: "Zack is aware of complaints made by the Labour party and the Conservative party. He denies any wrongdoing and will cooperate fully with the official process to answer any queries." A GLA spokesperson, in a masterclass of non-committal, said: "Those complaints are being considered under the GLA's usual process. It would not be appropriate to comment further while this process is ongoing."

So for now, Polanski's houseboat tax saga remains adrift in bureaucratic waters, awaiting a decision that could either sink his reputation or have him sailing smoothly on.