Bankrupted Birmingham council plans to spend £2.6m removing British and St George's flags

Birmingham city council is planning to spend £2.6million removing Union Jacks and St George's flags from its streets.The council - run by a coalition of the Liberal Democrats, the Greens and Independents - last month launched legal action to ban flags being left on lampposts.If granted an injunction, anyone who erects flags near roads without official permission could face an unlimited fine or up to two years in prison.Some 20,000 flags were hung from lampposts across Birmingham as part of Operation Raise the Colours, a campaign intended to boost national pride.According to court documents submitted by the council, it would cost taxpayer the equivalent of £132 each to remove each flag - or £2.64million in total.The council effectively declared itself bankrupt in September 2023, but said as of February this year that it had lifted itself out of financial turmoil.They also claim the mass removal would require police support and would need to be done 'during hours of darkness' due to 'safety concerns'.Birmingham city council holds the title of the most bankrupt local authority in the country, with more than £3.5billion of debt.In September 2023, it issued a section 114 notice, equivalent to declaring itself bankrupt. This followed more than a decade of control by a Labour majority. Multiple St George's and Union Jack flags are tied to lampposts around Weoley Castle in Birmingham Birmingham city council first sparked outrage in August last year by ordering the removal of British flags from lampposts This resulted in council tax jumping by 4.99 per cent for next year, which is the maximum threshold possible without holding a referendum.The authority said in August it was pursuing legal action to stop people raising the flags, after staff tasked with removing them faced harassment and intimidation.Jane Baston, a Green councillor and Birmingham's cabinet member for equalities, communities and social justice, said: 'The council is taking a lawful, proportionate and evidence-led approach to unauthorised attachments on the highway.'This includes pursuing injunctive action based on the evidence gathered to date. Our priority is to protect public safety, staff and contractor welfare, community cohesion and the responsible use of public funds.'We ask residents and community groups to support this approach and to ensure any displays are placed only where permission exists.'If the council is granted an injunction, anyone who erects flags such as the Union Jack near roads without the bankrupt Birmingham council's permission could face an unlimited fine or up to two years in prison. The authority defended the decision, claiming the flags posed a 'risk to safety' and could trigger 'conflict and disorder' amid a 'combination of large-scale unlawful activity and public tension'.It added: 'Given the scale of the issue, the risks to public safety, and the inability to safely and effectively enforce compliance through existing means, the council considers that injunctive relief is necessary.' Birmingham city council said it was pursuing legal action to stop people raising the flags, after staff tasked with removing them faced harassment and intimidationThe injunction was described as being 'proportionate' to 'a widespread and persistent problem that presents a clear risk of harm'.The council's application named Ryan Bridge, co-founder of Operation Raise the Colours, as well as seven others and 'persons unknown'.Birmingham city council first sparked outrage in August last year in ordering the removal of British flags from lampposts – while being 'too scared' to take down Palestine flags without police protection.At the time, they claimed the flags put the lives of pedestrians and motorists 'at risk' despite being as much as 25ft off the ground.The flags had been strung up by a small, organised group of residents to 'show Birmingham and the rest of the country how proud we are of our history, freedoms and achievements'.In a statement published in August, Raise The Colours said: 'We have become aware of a Birmingham city council post referring to a High Court injunction application concerning unauthorised highway attachments, including flags, banners and signage.'We were not in dialogue with Birmingham city council prior to this. We only became aware after members of the public alerted us to the Council's Facebook post and after the matter was mentioned on TalkTV.'We believe public funds would be better spent on core services such as refuse collections, safer streets and supporting local communities.'We are seeking clarity and will respond through a proper legal process if required.'We ask everyone not to speculate and to allow the facts to be established through proper channels. We will update people when we are able to do so.' It follows a heated nationwide debate over the display of British and St George's flags, hailed by some as symbols of national pride but condemned by others as nationalist emblems used to intimidate ethnic minorities. Elsewhere, in July, Oxfordshire council became the first local authority to gain legal authority to end flag flying from public infrastructure.Maintenance staff at Oxfordshire County Council were told to wear face coverings and check their vehicles for trackers when removing the flags after a colleague's home address was published by campaigners.The local authority, which was previously run by the Liberal Democrats but now has no overall control, had brought legal action to stop people raising flags near highways, which it said involved safety risks concerning trespassing and obstruction.While some politicians decried the removals, others claimed the increased number being flown was a result of xenophobia or racism.Oxfordshire County Council said flags had been placed on or near public roads without permission for months, despite a formal legal notice in March and pre-action legal letters sent to individuals in May.READ MORE: Liberal Democrat council starts legal battle in bid to ban flags from public roads amid claims they 'intimidate residents'