COMPO’S statue has fallen victim to the spending cuts.

Councillors yesterday decided to scrap funding on Holmfirth Heritage Garden.

The £200,000 plan for Kings Head Gardens off Huddersfield Road included a bronze statue of Compo from Last of the Summer Wine.

But Kirklees Council’s Labour Cabinet decided yesterday to cancel the spending – along with millions more to improve villages around Huddersfield.

Bill Owen played the character of scruffy pensioner Compo Simmonite right up to his death aged 85 in 1999.

The London-born actor became an adopted Yorkshireman and is buried in Upperthong.

His son Tom – who joined the show as one of the lead characters – first raised the idea of a Compo statue in 2003.

Kirklees had been due to spend £200,000 on the garden near the famous Wrinkled Stocking Cafe.

Clr Ken Sims, who represents Holmfirth, made a last-ditch plea for the plan to be saved.

The Holme Valley South Conservative told Cabinet: "We’ve spent thousands on this scheme already in planning applications and procurement of designs yet here you are saying you’re going to cut it out.

"I think the heritage garden can still be done and I would ask you to consider doing it for a smaller amount of money. Cut some money out and we’ll work with what’s left – we’ll produce a garden."

Clr Sims added that the Compo statue would benefit Kirklees.

He said: "We are talking about jobs and bringing money into the council through tourism. Let’s show the public that we can listen."

Holmfirth businessman Andrew Bray later described the decision as "a great shame and a missed opportunity.’’