“Not only did they know it was a protected tree but they knew that planning officers would object to its removal.
“If there was genuine remorse for the work they have done they could’ve come to us but that didn’t happen and it was almost a year before we were made aware of it.”
Ms Smith added there was also a public interest in the prosecution and not pursuing the case would be “undermining our position as a public authority”.
Fran Whymark agreed they had to prosecute, saying: “Otherwise, anyone who wants to get rid of a tree will feel carte blanche to do so.”