Vandals chop down English oak tree planted to commemorate Julia Gillard's service as Prime Minister - but leave Bob Hawke's untouched
- Former Prime Minister Julia Gillard's commemorative tree has been vandalised
- The Blue Mountains mayor has condemned the 'indefencible' act
- Ms Gillard planted the tree at the Prime Ministers' Corridor of Oaks in 2017
An English oak tree planted in honour of former Prime Minister Julia Gillard has been cut down by vandals.
The hateful act has been condemned by New South Wales' Blue Mountains mayor Mark Greenhill, where the tree was planted.
'It's not defendable,' Mr Greenhill told 7 News.
'When she planted the tree in 2017, it was an awesome day. More than 300 people came out to celebrate her.'
The hateful act has been condemned by New South Wales' Blue Mountains mayor Mark Greenhill, where the tree was planted
A social media user shared the heartbreaking image to Reddit on Thursday after noticing the tree had been chopped down.
The image showed the tree had been cut so that only a small part of the root stem was visible through the soil.
'I was just there yesterday looking at Bob Hawke's tree,' the user wrote, adding that the act was 'low'.
'Whichever way you lean this is a living tree that someone has killed, to make an eye sore for residents and tourists alike to make a stand against someone who will likely never come this way again anyway.'
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The user said no other tree in the Prime Ministers' Corridor of Oaks had been damaged.
They said they had contacted police and council about what they had found.
Katoomba police said the act is classified as 'malicious damage' and is being investigated.
Ms Gillard planted the tree at the Prime Ministers' Corridor of Oaks in 2017.
Ms Gillard planted the tree at the Prime Ministers' Corridor of Oaks in 2017 (pictured planting the tree)
The user said no other tree in the Prime Ministers' Corridor of Oaks had been damaged
