The poster was published in a magazine on the history of UK government communications.

"If you suspect your child has rabies, don't hesitate - shoot," it reads.

The UK government has accidentally published a poster urging parents to shoot their children if they catch rabies.

The poster was published in a magazine on the history of UK government communications - but obviously wasn't meant to be.

"This image is a parody of 1970s public information campaigns and was mistakenly used in a publication for illustrative purposes," a spokeswoman told BBC News.

It originated on a Twitter account for the fictional Scarfolk Council, which parodies a small British town "that did not progress beyond 1979".

"Wow. This has made my week," the account's owner, Richard Littler, tweeted. "They mistakenly included a Scarfolk poster which encourages the killing of children. Clearly, nobody thought it was too extreme."