Reform UK Row Highlights Importance Of County Flags

Political rows over flags are nothing new in any part of the world where national identity is a contentious thing, but an unexpected row following last week’s local elections has raised the profile of county flags.

Reform UK enjoyed spectacular success as it took control of ten county councils, chiefly at the expense of the Conservatives, which it hopes to replace as the main party on the right of British politics. But it also made major gains from Labour, which has taken a hit due to the unpopularity of some of its policies in its first year after winning the general election.

It remains to be seen how Reform-run councils will perform in their core activities such as schools, libraries and social care, but the first big policy announcement has concerned the issue of flags.

Farage’s Flag Fiasco?

It announced that in Reform-run authorities, the kind of flags that would be displayed on all council-run buildings would be subject to a strict policy. On the one hand, the Union Flag and St George’s Cross would be up there as displays of the kind of patriotism the party accuses its rivals of lacking. All others would be banned.

Among these might be non-territorial flags allied to social and political causes, such as Pride flags, but there was particular consternation over the implication that Ukrainian flags would be banned, not least as Reform leader Nigel Farage has been accused of being an admirer of Vladimir Putin alongside his friend, President Trump.

However, the issue of UK County flags has also been raised. Following the change of control in Leicestershire from Conservative to Reform, the Tory MP for Hinckley and Bosworth, Dr Luke Evans, posted on X: “So let me get this straight...Leicestershire County Council would not be able to fly the Leicestershire County flag? Really?"

Dr Evans was one of many opposition politicians to raise this particular issue and, in response, Reform has now clarified that county flags will be allowed.

This means that Lancashire will still be displaying the red rose emblem, Leicestershire its red and white flag with a fox and emblems of the earls of De Beaumont and De Montfort, and Durham its blue and yellow flag featuring the cross of St Cuthbert.

While Lancashire’s flag is a traditional one and a counterpart to Yorkshire’s white rose - these flowers having traditional associations with the Wars of the Roses and the Roses match in cricket - other flags are much newer, suggesting a greater desire in recent years to assert local identity. For example, Durham’s flag was designated in 2013 after a public vote.

County Flags Without Counties

This sense of local pride and identity may lead to more people wanting to fly their county flag, whether their local council wants to or not. Indeed, there are some cases where a county flag might be a marker of identity where the county itself no longer exists.

For example, the creation of the county of Cumbria in 1974 meant the abolition of the historic counties of Cumberland and Westmorland, although the former is now a district council. Although officially registered in 2012, the green, white and blue Cumberland flag is a redesign of the original 1950s coat of arms, while the Westmorland Flag, designated in 2011, is based on the county coat of arms granted in 1926.