Labour Leader Helen Clark said today that she deplored the latest act of vandalism against the lone pine on top of One Tree Hill.

“For Aucklanders this tree has an iconic status. It is both a reference point and a symbol of our city.

“Whatever the pros and cons of the arguments being advanced by yesterday’s protestors, their cause can never be advanced by resorting to this sort of senseless destruction.

“I hope that the damage inflicted on the tree in yesterday’s attack can be reversed. If not, Auckland will lose one of its proudest and most recognisable landmarks,” Helen Clark said.

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