Should it stay or should it go? What do you think? Tell us at letters@westendextra.com [Mr Ignavy, Wikimedia (cc by-sa 2.0), detail]

VOTE Labour, keep the Banksy statue!

That was the message coming from senior Labour councillor Geoff Barraclough, in the build-up to the council election.

The statue of a man marching into oblivion while holding a flag obscuring his vision remains in Waterloo Place after it was covertly installed by the elusive print artist on April 29.

Planning permission has not been sought but despite this the council said it wanted to keep it there permanently.

Barraclough, in the city’s Labour cabinet since 2022, said: “We were absolutely delighted when Banksy left this generous gift. A brand new sculpture in Waterloo Place.

“I am happy to confirm that as long as Labour are running the council we want it to stay. We think it could become the start of something much bigger. We are looking to give four football pitches of public space back to the people. We are only in power for a few more days. If you want Banksy to stay, and form part of a new pedestrianised area, you will need to vote Labour on May 7,” he said.

Geoff Barraclough pitching to keep the statue

Later, Mark Shearer, standing for the Conservatives, said they would talk to officers about the statue’s future if the party took control of the city council.

The statue of the suited man – celebrated for its attack against US president Donald Trump and nationalism in general – has a protective barrier around it. Unlike most of Banksy’s spray- paint public art, the artist quickly claimed the piece through Instagram.

The traffic island it sits on is surrounded by statues of figures of nationalistic pride, like King Edward VII, Florence Nightingale, and Winston Churchill.

A social media video posted by the artist showed glimpses of how he was able to install the plinth in the early hours of last Wednesday.

Although the artwork itself would have been months in the making, the operation itself was swift.

You can see yellow traffic cones marking off the area as a large vehicle pulls up before deploying lorry-load stabilisers and someone in an orange hi-vis vest. And a figure with protective goggles is seen briefly before the statue is lifted on to the plinth using a hook.

Last November a man was sentenced to 13 months for stealing a £270,000 Banksy painting from a gallery in Fitzrovia.

It is not clear whether it would be a crime to steal a statue from the public road.