Pictures of the week
A young girl looks at artwork in Dover attributed to street artist Banksy, depicting a workman chipping away at one of the 12 stars on the European Union Hannah McKay/Reuters

A mural by Banksy showing a workman on a long ladder removing a star from the European Union's flag has been vandalised just a day after it appeared on the wall of a disused Dover amusement arcade.

The graffiti artist's work appeared on the wall in the Brexit-supporting port town over the weekend. It was his first artwork that commented on the UK's exit from the EU and appeared aptly at the British town which is the closest to continental Europe.

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Kent Live News said the massive mural, which was "reportedly valued at £1m", had the words 'The Clash' painted on the rungs of the ladder.

"Whether this is in reference to the seminal punk band - whose second album opens with the song Safe European Home - is unclear," Kent Live reported.

Residents mostly welcomed the graffiti, saying that it brightened up a tatty corner of the town.

Veryan Kent told Kent Live: "It doesn't say whether he is pro or anti-Brexit but I assume he is against it as you see the man chipping away the star.

"I love the fact he had his scaffolding up and no one had any idea. He must have had an army of people working on it. I love it."

Another resident, Mark Hamilton, said that Dover District Council should protect the artwork but others dismissed the idea as a waste of public money.

No plans to protect artwork

The local authority said it would monitor the artwork with CCTV. A council spokesman told the BBC: "We are aware of the continuing interest around the artwork attributed to Banksy.

"The building is not owned by Dover District Counci, and we have no other plans to take action to protect the artwork at this time," he said.

BBC said that the owners of the building had not commented on the artwork.