UK flies the flag to fight Scottish independence

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LONDON — Britain is flying the flag to keep the U.K. nations together — literally.

The government will start hoisting the Union Jack over government buildings every day, Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden announced Wednesday, as a “proud reminder of our history and the ties that bind us.”

At the moment, Union flags only need to be flown on all government buildings on designated days. But from this summer the red, white and blue banner will be the assumed decoration unless another flag is being flown, according to new guidance.

“The Union flag unites us as a nation and people rightly expect it to be flown above UK Government buildings,” said Dowden in a statement. 

But the Scottish National Party, which fights for Scottish independence from the U.K., criticized the move. SNP MP Mhairi Black said: “If Tories think an overload of Union Jacks on buildings is the answer to promote the strength of the Union, it shows how thin the case is.”

The new rules will not apply in Northern Ireland, where flag-flying is a sensitive topic that can incite tensions between nationalist and unionist communities. 

The government is also allowing dual-flagging, where two flags can be flown on one pole, while rules allowing the EU flag to be flown on public buildings without planning permission will be scrapped, following Brexit. NHS flags will be allowed to fly without planning permission.

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