Vandalised Attlee statue being moved to safety
A STATUE of post-war Prime Minister Clement Attlee in his old East London constituency which has been covered by hoardings for four years after being vandalised is being moved away to safety. The bronze work has greeted passers-by along the Commercial Road since 1988 in the constituency he represented for 30 years
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A STATUE of post-war Prime Minister Clement Attlee in his old East London constituency which has been covered by hoardings for four years after being vandalised is being moved away to safety.
The larger than life’ bronze work outside Limehouse Library that has greeted passers-by along the Commercial Road since 1988 in the constituency he represented for 30 years had one of its hands broken off and stolen.
It is now being moved to Queen Mary College in Mile End, which is picking up the tab for repairs and relocation. Work is due to start in January and be completed by March.
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Tower Hamlets Tory councillor Tim Archer, a Parliamentary candidate for Poplar & Limehouse, led a campaign to get it patched up.
“It’s a rare statue of Clem Attlee and we should be looking after our heritage for the whole community,” he said. “At the moment it looks ridiculous and unsightly.”
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Attlee was Labour Prime Minister from 1945 to 1951 and was one of the architects of the NHS, widely revered by politicians of all political parties. He was Deputy Prime Minister in Churchill’s wartime Cabinet from 1942 to 1945.
His statue was unveiled outside Limehouse Library by Harold Wilson in 1988, the last remaining member of his post-war Cabinet.
But it was vandalised four years ago after the library was shut and had to be protected with hoardings.
