The boss of a Scarborough firm says he’s ‘shocked’ after being billed more than £2,700 for putting up ‘unauthorised flags’ in the town.
Removing union and St George’s flags across the county has cost North Yorkshire Council (NYC) almost £7,000 since July 2025, a Freedom of Information (FoI) request has revealed.
Documents obtained via the FoI show that Squeeky Clean (Scarborough) Ltd was invoiced by the authority over the “unauthorised erection of flags” to the tune of £2,785.5.
In a letter to the company, NYC said:
“On October 30/31 we removed 64 flags in the Scarborough area believed to be your property and that you may wish us to return them.
“On the basis that all the flags were yours, this equates to £36.27 per flag, plus VAT.”
Will Haylett, owner and founder of Squeeky Clean Scarborough, said he was “shocked and deeply disappointed” to be invoiced for the cost of removing the flags, and that “at no point was there any intention to cause harm, obstruction, or nuisance”.
He said:
“All I was trying to do was bring a bit of community spirit to the area. A lot of people are struggling and feeling depressed, and the flags genuinely made people smile and lifted spirits.”
North Yorkshire Council’s corporate director of environment, Karl Battersby, said:
“Under national legislation, it’s an offence to attach flags and other material to lampposts and other highway infrastructure without the council’s permission.
“The reason for this is because they can pose a safety issue by obstructing visibility or becoming detached, and often people put themselves at risk installing them in the first instance.
“We also had numerous members of the public report concerns linked to the appearance of the flags. As a result, it was right that we removed them and sought to identify those responsible.
“We are clear on the issues involved and the costs incurred in removing them. We will not be commenting further on the matter.”
The authority’s total costs came to £6,824.70, however, for locations where only one flag was removed, the council said it “would not charge for the five–10 minutes taken to complete that individual task”.
It said that “instead, this minimal time is absorbed into the overall operational time for the wider programme of removals carried out across multiple locations within the area”.
The council was not able to provide a breakdown of costs incurred in removing flags in different towns in North Yorkshire, as requested in the FoI submitted by the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS).
Last year, thousands of union flags or St George’s flags appeared on lampposts and other structures across the country.
Some defended the erection of flags, stating that they inspire patriotism and community spirit, while others said they felt the flags were divisive and intimidating.
North Yorkshire Council said the flags could pose a health and safety risk “by obstructing visibility or becoming detached”.
Mr Haylett added:
“This was about doing something positive for the community, not about profit or publicity.
“To be fined so heavily for an act that brought happiness to so many people feels completely disproportionate and disheartening.”
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