How Much Will Lamp Post Flags Cost Yorkshire Coast Tax Payers?

North Yorkshire Council says it doesn't yet know how much it will cost to remove flags that have been erected on lamp posts across the county.

Hundreds of Union Flags and St George's Cross flags have been appearing on lamp posts around the country over recent weeks including in towns on the Yorkshire Coast in contravention of the 1980's highways act.

In England, the flying of flags is treated as advertisements for the purposes of the planning regime to ensure the flags do not impact on safety or amenity.

The 1980 Highways Act prohibits affixing items to structures on the highway without permission from the highways authority. Under section 132(2) of the act, it states the highway authority can remove them. 

However that hasn't stopped local firms publicising their involvement in installing flags on social media and there has also been criticism levelled at Scarborough's Mayor, Town Councillor Thomas Murray, who took to social media welcoming the installation of the flags.

Comments on the post included:

"As an elected representative of our community, do you feel it's okay to encourage, what is essentially, illegal activity?"

"the integrity of our Mayor is seriously in question if he thinks posting images of himself endorsing illegal activity on his professional social media is acceptable. "

In a statement to This is the Coast, Councillor Murray said:

"To be clear, I haven’t called for people to put flags on lampposts, and I understand there are rules about this. At the same time, I think it’s important to recognise the spirit behind it. The St George’s Cross is our national flag, and I admire the pride and patriotism people are showing when they choose to display it.

I’m very proud to be British, and I know many in our community feel strongly that our history and heritage should be respected. The pace of change in recent years has left some feeling that those traditions are being overlooked, and these flags are, in many ways, a response to that.

My Facebook post was about acknowledging that pride , not about making a formal statement on behalf of the Town Council, nor about giving approval to how or where the flags were put up.

I understand concerns about cost and rules, and those are matters for the relevant authority. But for me, the bigger point is that people want to celebrate who we are, and I think that deserves recognition."

City of York Council has estimated it will cost around £250,000 to remove flags in the City of York. The authority had initially said it would not remove Union Flags and St George's Cross flags when they first appeared back in August but has since changed it's stance after safety concerns were raised.

North Yorkshire Council say they don't yet know how much tax payers money will be needed to remove the flags from highways infrastructure.

North Yorkshire Council’s corporate director of environment, Karl Battersby, said: 

“While we respect individuals' rights to fly and paint flags on their own private property, we are monitoring the situation closely when public property is involved.

“We will remove any unauthorised markings on roundabouts and our property, as this is illegal and could also pose a risk to the public. Any flags which are painted on roundabouts or road markings will be removed as soon as resources allow. 

“Our approach when flags which have been fixed to street furniture, such as lampposts, is that they will be taken down when they pose a safety risk to the public or could cause damage.

“We would, however, discourage individuals from placing ladders against lampposts as this poses a significant safety risk and could damage the structure as well. 

“We appreciate the public’s cooperation in helping to maintain safety and respect for these shared spaces. 

“The exact cost of removing flags is yet to be established but we will always keep the cost to taxpayers to a minimum wherever we can.” 

Other organisations will also face clean up costs from the recent outpouring of national pride after flags were painted onto roadways, the White Horse at Sutton Bank and even a phone box in Sneaton

While adding flags to street furniture is not allowed, there is government guidance on flying flags from private buildings and flagpoles. The guidance includes a list of flags that can be flown without permission.

The guidance published in 2021 states:

"The government wants to see more flags flown, particularly the Union Flag, the flag of the United Kingdom. It is a symbol of national unity and pride. The government has recently issued guidance encouraging the flying of the Union Flag on all UK government buildings throughout the year, alongside other national and local flags."

"In England, the flying of flags is treated as advertisements for the purposes of the planning regime to ensure the flags do not impact on safety or amenity. Some flags require formal consent (permission) from the local planning authority, whereas others like the Union Flag do not. "

The guidance sets out some standard conditions for the flying of flags, it says:

All flags must be:

• be maintained in a condition that does not impair the overall visual appearance of the site
• be kept in a safe condition
• have the permission of the owner of the site on which they are displayed (this includes the Highway Authority if the sign is to be placed on highway land)
• not obscure, or hinder the interpretation of official road, rail, waterway or aircraft signs, or otherwise make hazardous the use of these types of transport
• be removed carefully where so required by the planning authority

Some flags can flown without requiring any special permissions those flags include:

• Any country’s national flag, civil ensign or civil air ensign
• The flag of the Commonwealth, the United Nations or any other international organisation of which the United Kingdom is a member
• A flag of any island, county, district, borough, burgh, parish, city, town or village within the United Kingdom
• The flag of the Black Country, East Anglia, Wessex, any Part of Lincolnshire, any Riding of Yorkshire or any historic county within the United Kingdom
• The flag of Saint David
• The flag of Saint Patrick
• The flag of any administrative area within any country outside the United Kingdom
• Any flag of His Majesty’s forces
• The Armed Forces Day flag

The use of the word “country” in the list above, includes any of the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man and any British Overseas Territory. The flags of St George and St Andrew are recognised as the national flags of England and Scotland, but the flags of St David and St Patrick are listed separately as they do not necessarily fall into the category of a country’s national flag.

Some other flags can be flown without permission as longs as they comply with certain restrictions, those flags include:

• house flag – flag is allowed to display the name, emblem, device or trademark of the company (or person) occupying the building, or can refer to a specific event of limited duration that is taking place in the building from which the flag is flown
• any sports club (but cannot include sponsorship logos)
• the Rainbow flag (6 horizontal equal stripes of red, orange, yellow, green, blue and violet).
• specified award schemes – Eco-Schools, Queen’s Awards for Enterprise and Investors in People
• the NHS flag
• certain environmental awards such as Blue Flags and Green Flags

The guidance also contains information relating to where flag poles can be attached to buildings and how flags should be arranged on flagpoles. The full guidance can be seen at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/flying-flags-a-plain-english-guide/flying-flags-a-plain-english-guide