A tree mural created by street artist Banksy has been defaced with white paint.

The graffiti, in which splashes of green paint ona white wall give the impression of foliage behind a pollarded tree, appeared in Finsbury Park over the weekend.

There is a also a stencil of a person holding a pressure hose on the building in Hornsey Road.

Images shared on social media this morning (March 20) show two streaks of white paint in one corner of the mural.

One person took to X this morning expressing disappointment that the vandalism had happened so soon after the art was created.

They said: “This is why we can’t have anything nice. #Banksy mural defaced after just 3 days.”

But others disagreed, with one responding: “LMAO. It’s art when Banksy defaces a building. It’s vandalism when someone does it.

“The green is the ‘art’. The white is the vandalism.”

Fencing and a sign asking people not to walk on the grass have now been placed around the mural, after large crowds gathered to look at the elusive street artist’s latest work.

One of those who was impressed by the mural was Islington North MP, Jeremy Corbyn.

Islington Gazette: Jeremy Corbyn was among those who visited the mural before it was defaced Jeremy Corbyn was among those who visited the mural before it was defaced (Image: PA)

He told PA: “I like it. It gives a good talking point, a bit of hope and an idea that we’ve got to do a bit more to care for the natural world.

“Looking at it through the pollarded tree it looks brilliant.”