Longford County Council in Ireland had directed local landowner Louis Herterich to remove a palisade gate and fence from his property within six weeks.

However, a planning consultant acting for Mr Herterich pointed out that the fence was not new, was not on his property, and had been erected by the council.

The consultant, Liam Madden, added that the council could have walked “circa 300 metres” from its headquarters to “the scene of the crime” to see for itself.

The council has sent an apology to Mr Herterich acknowledging that the fence “was in fact erected by the Environment Department of Longford County Council in response to anti-social behaviour and had nothing to do with yourself”, the Business Post reports.