Overview

• Derby City Council will begin taking down Union and St George’s flags from public street furniture on Monday, September 29, offering a short period for people to retrieve items before storing any left in place.
• Councillor Sara Chambers said the city needs to clear lampposts for upcoming seasonal and commemorative uses and that future displays on public land will require standard permissions.
• Local approaches differ: Rotherham is removing only items that are offensive, unsafe or subject to complaints, Barnsley bars attachments to public assets without permission, and Sheffield will remove unauthorised items during routine maintenance.
• Darlington Borough Council urged residents to stop flying unauthorised flags in public spaces as autumn weather increases safety risks, reiterating that flags should be flown on private property.
• Hertsmere leader Jeremy Newmark apologised after calling Operation Raise the Colours campaigners “criminals, extremists and nonces,” as opposition councillors in Derby and elsewhere criticised removals and warned of heightened tensions.