A town council in Essex destroyed a mural by the world-famous street artist Banksy, after a member of the public complained it was racist.
The piece in Clacton-on-Sea showed four pigeons brandishing placards saying “Go back to Africa” and “Migrants not welcome” while an exotic bird rests on a nearby wire.
The council said it was unaware that the artwork was by Banksy, the pseudonym of a reclusive street artist whose work can fetch high prices at auctions.
The local district council said a complaint was made that the piece was “racist” and “offensive.”
The piece was posted to Banksy’s official website, but by the time the pictures went live it had already been removed by the council.
A still of the mural taken from Banksy's website (Image: Banksy.co.uk)
How the mural looks now (Image: BBC)
Speaking to the BBC, Nigel Brown, communications manager for the council, said: "The site was inspected by staff who agreed that it could be seen as offensive and it was removed this morning in line with our policy to remove this type of material within 48 hours.
"We would obviously welcome an appropriate Banksy original on any of our seafronts and would be delighted if he returned in the future."
The piece is believed to be a reference to an upcoming by-election in the Clacton-on-Sea constituency, where a Conservative MP recently defected to the anti-immigration UKIP party.
(H/T: BBC)