THE Union Jack is to be flown on government buildings every day of the year under plans to celebrate pride in the UK.
Ministers are poised to issue new guidance this week to get the flag on show all year round and not just on designated days.
Currently, the flag is only required to be flown on the buildings in England, Wales and Scotland on special days – such as the Queen’s birthday.
It is being billed as part of wider plans to celebrate and protect the Union, especially against mounting pressure in Scotland for a second independence referendum.
And, post-Brexit, the government is also set to require managers of public buildings in England to apply for planning permission if they want to fly the EU flag.
The move comes after BBC Breakfast presenters Charlie Stayt and Naga Munchetty were accused last week of poking fun of Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick for displaying the Union Jack in his office in his office.
That sparked a backlash from the Corporation and a statement from director-general Tim Davie that the BBC is ‘proud to be British’.
But Tory MPs suggested the ‘new excellent’ flag guidance should also apply to the Corporation’s many buildings.
Morecambe MP David Morris said that the BBC ‘could do with a reminder of how the Union Flag is cherished by the British people’.
Officials last night hailed the flag as ‘one of the most recognisable symbols of the partnership between the four constituent nations of the UK’.
Sources have reportedly confirmed the Government was not ordering public buildings in Scotland to fly the flag at the Scottish government buildings instead of the Saltire.
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