Review of the year: December - Three naked men branded 'morons' for uprooting Christmas tree (From Enfield Independent)

Review of the year: December - Three naked men uproot Christmas tree decorated by children

2:00pm Tuesday 1st January 2013 in News By Hermione Wright

December, and police appealed for wives and girlfriends to check their loved ones for unexplained scratches after naked drunken men were spotted uprooting a Christmas tree.

Eye-witnesses saw the young men attack the tree in The Green in Winchmore Hill just as pubs were closing one Friday evening and informed Enfield Police immediately.

Enfield Borough Council’s Cabinet Member for Environment, Councillor Chris Bond, hit out at the Scrooges and said: “If anyone who can help us identify these idiots, then we'd be delighted to hear from them."

The council replanted the tree, which had been decorated by children, and promised to plant a new one if it died following the bizarre incident.

Earlier in the month, campaigners had claimed the council’s decision to block an entertainment licence granted for Chase Green was a “victory for common sense”.

The leader of the council, Councillor Doug Taylor, withdrew plans a day after the council granted a licence to allow events including films, plays, sporting events, music and dancing to run in the park for up to 20 days a year.

Brian Macdonald, 76, who lives in Chase Green Avenue overlooking the park, said: “We are overjoyed. We haven’t come down to earth yet.”

Members of Southgate Bowling Club also said it was an “awful shame” it was forced to close after more than 90 years in the borough due to dwindling membership.

Secretary Michael Davis hit out at the council for not providing parking in Broomfield Park in Palmers Green, where the club is based, which he believed led to the decline.