Prime Minister Kier Starmer has said he is “very encouraging” of people flying national flags, but said they can be devalued when flown “purely for divisive purposes”.
The widespread flying of Union and St George’s Cross flags, following an online campaign called Operation Raise the Colours, has become contentious and several local authorities have removed them from public infrastructure.
Some politicians have decried their removal, while others claim the increased number of flags is a result of xenophobia or racism.
Asked on Monday whether people putting up the Union and St George’s Cross flags in the wake of asylum hotel protests could be considered racist, Sir Keir Starmer told BBC Radio 5 Live: “I am supporter of flags.”
He added: “I am the leader of the Labour Party who put the Union Jack on our Labour Party membership cards. I always sit in front of the Union Jack. I’ve been doing it for years, and it attracted a lot of comment when I started doing it.”
The Prime Minister also said his family has “got St George’s flag in our flat” in Downing Street.
He went on: “I’m very encouraging of flags. I think they’re patriotic and I think they’re a great symbol of our nation.
“I don’t think they should be devalued and belittled. I think sometimes when they’re used purely for divisive purposes, actually it devalues the flag.
“I don’t want to see that. I’m proud of our flag.”
Downing Street declined to tell reporters how large the St George’s Cross flag in the No 10 flat was, revealing only that Sir Keir got it when he attended the Euros final between England and Spain in 2024.
“I actually am limited in how much I can comment on the size of his flag,” the Prime Minister’s official spokesman added.
He said the Prime Minister could not, however, support “graffiti” and that people “can judge what the appropriate ways are” of using flags.
On Friday, Durham County Council issued a statement about the recent increase in the number of Union flags and St George’s Cross flags on lampposts.
The Reform-led council said that while it understood and respected people’s desire to show national pride, public safety should not be compromised.
It will take a “risk-based approach” and it will remove flags where they pose a danger to road-users, obstruct visibility for drivers or pedestrians, or if they are poorly secured.
Councils in other local authorities, including Tower Hamlets in east London and Birmingham, have also recently removed flags.
Tory leader Kemi Badenoch previously said it is “shameful” of councils to remove St George’s Cross flags and said local rules were being enforced “selectively”.
Writing in the Daily Mail in August, she said the flying of English flags should be “welcomed”, rather than be “seen as an act of rebellion”.
“After years of politicisation by those who seek to diminish England’s culture and Christian heritage, it is encouraging to see English flags flown proudly as symbols of unity, nationhood and optimism,” she said.
