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UK town’s dead Christmas tree still standing in June – and removing it would be illegal
In the middle of this remarkable June heat, one Brit town still has a rather unusual summer centre piece – its Christmas tree.
Beverley in East Yorkshire had planned to take its tree down in January along with the rest of the country, but something went wrong and now its hands are tied.
Under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 it is illegal to take down, damage or destroy a tree with nesting birds – and as such up the tree shall remain until one particular pigeon decides, in its own time, it wants to move on.
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The tree, far from at its best at this stage, still even has its lights on – although admittedly they aren’t plugged in.
A deep brown colour now dominates the colour scheme where once a rich green ruled.
Councillor Denis Healy said: “The council came to move it earlier in the year and the guys who found it said they shouldn’t be moving it, so they didn’t.
“We had lights on the tree and they are still on it because we were advised moving them might disturb the bird. But the lights aren’t switched on.
“Quite a few people were wondering why there was a tree still there and why it had been left. We had to put notices on to tell people.
“As a green council, we care about biodiversity, nature and green issues, we wouldn’t want to remove the bird. But even if we did, it would be illegal.”
With breeding season set to wrap up in July hopes are high that the pigeon finally moves on.
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