A FLAG honouring the murdered soldier Lee Rigby on a town’s beauty spot has had ‘White Lives Matter’ sprayed across it.

The flag, placed at the top of Eston Nab as a tribute to Mr Rigby in 2013, was taken down by Redcar & Cleveland Council four times before they left it up, following protests.

At that time, the council said Eston Nab was classed as an ancient monument and owned by them, therefore the flag’s erection was a criminal offence.

During the renewal of the Black Lives Matter – a slogan which is infers ‘too’ – movement, counter-protest slogan ‘White Lives Matter’ was graffitied on the England flag.

Political blog Tees Valley Monitor calls the slogan “unashamedly racist” and is asking the council to remove the flag.

A spokesperson for Tees Valley Monitor said: “Whether or not the council own the flag, the fact it is within their area means they need to take it upon themselves to remove it on behalf of the people of Eston.

“The White Lives Matter slogan is not acceptable and the flag’s removal needs to be someone’s responsibility.”

Leader of Redcar & Cleveland Council Mary Lanigan said: “Eston Nab is an iconic area of natural beauty for everyone to enjoy.

“We were first alerted earlier this month that a slogan had been written on a flag at the Nab and there have been similar issues there before.

“We have been working on a long term solution, as opposed to a quick fix, since that time and are in dialogue with a number of people and partners in the area.

“The council supports equality and we have long established policies in place to promote opportunity and fairness for all.”

When asked if the incident is being treated as a hate crime, Cleveland police said there have been no reports or complaints to the force.