Sefton Council’s Planning Committee has recommended that sculptor Antony Gormley’s collection of 100 cast iron naked men, installed on a two-mile area of Merseyside beach in July 2005, should be removed.

The committee made its decision on 18 October, denying permanent planning permission to the statues on the basis of safety considerations and the impact the installation has had on the local wildlife.

However, the decision was contrary to recommendations of other council officers, who said that the licence should be extended.

Gormley’s sculptures, called Another Place, were given temporary planning permission 18 months ago. Although this ends on 30 November, work could begin as early as next week to remove the statues, due to high tides.

It is understood that the sculptures have so far attracted more than half a million people.

According to a spokesperson for Sefton Council, they have no official position on the matter.

But a spokesperson for Another Place Limited (APL) – the organisation established to find out whether the statues would be permanently viable or not – has said that an appeal has been submitted to the Sefton Planning Committee and a public enquiry into the decision is in the process of being launched.

APL will also put forward a permanent planning application.