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Flying the Flag…for What?

 

The Localism Act, the draft National Planning Policy Framework, impending changes to Government advice on Gypsies and Travellers, pre-application consultation with the community: just a few of the many various ‘radical’ reforms to the planning system underway at the hands of Eric Pickles et al. The intention is for these changes to make improvements, but the potential outcome is debatable.

A paper by Mr Pickles issued in early January 2012 on ‘Liberalising the regime for flying flags’ came as rather a surprise: the Government now wants to streamline the planning regulations that apply to flag-flying to cut bureaucracy and reduce or eliminate the cost of applying for consent.

But since when has being prevented from flying a flag by the planning system been a major issue, and with everything else on the Government’s plate how can precious ministerial and departmental time be justified on what seems to me to be, literally, a ‘flag flying exercise’?

In 25 years in Local Government, and nearly 12 years in private practice, I can recall only one single instance when a proposed flag became anywhere near a planning problem, and in the end it wasn’t.

The current regulations permit various flags to be flown without needing planning (advertisement) consent, including any country’s national flag; the flag of the Commonwealth, the EU or United Nations; the flag of any English County and the flag of any Saint (but only in the County with which that Saint is associated)! Yes, I too struggle to think of any obvious Saint/County combination!

Mr Pickles advises that ‘flags deserve respect’, as they can demonstrate power and integrity, inspire pride, rally people behind a cause, and that they are a ‘very British way of expressing joy’. He wants to encourage more flag flying so that people, communities, institutions and firms can express local identity and pride, and is therefore proposing to ‘liberalise’ the regime to permit a wider range of flags to be flown without incurring the time and expense of having to apply for consent.

Accordingly, it is suggested that the following flags could be exempted from control:

• The flags of Crown Dependencies, the British Overseas Territories, the plain British Red (Civil) Ensign and the British Civil Air Ensign

• The flag of any international organisation of which the United Kingdom is a member

• The flag of any current or historic UK traditional region, county, district, riding, city, borough/burgh, parish, town, village or hamlet; [this goes beyond English counties and associated saints to include the flags of other geographic areas]

• The flag of any recognised administrative area in countries outside the UK, such as Australian states;

• Any heraldic banner of arms or flag granted by Her Majesty’s heraldic authorities;

• Any ensign of Her Majesty’s fleet authorised by warrant or statutory instrument for use outside Her Majesty’s Naval Service; UK government service ensigns; and the flags and ensigns of Her Majesty’s armed forces (other than the plain White Ensign of Her Majesty’s Fleet);

• The rainbow “Pride” flag;

• Flags for official environmental award schemes, and, finally,

• Flags of sports clubs (by people other than the clubs themselves, such as their members and supporters).

As a Hull City supporter and season ticket holder, it seems then that I will be soon be able to fly a Hull City flag from the rooftop of the Tyler Parkes office without having to apply for consent- just what I always wanted!

For the flags which are not exempt from these radical changes, Pickles suggests that local planning authorities may ‘obtain greater value for money by subcontracting the processing of such applications to specialist bodies with expertise in flags and their symbolism’.

Now I doubt that any such specialist firms are likely to have any in-house planning expertise, or have ever needed such advice anyway. So how they can be thought to be proper bodies to suddenly start dealing with planning applications for flags is questionable.

But there is an obvious opening here for Tyler Parkes; I will embark upon a crash course in flags and their symbolism; we’ll set up a department in the office to parallel our work on planning applications, development plans and the like; sign lucrative contracts with lots of desperate local planning authorities; and ‘sweep up’ the market in dealing with the landslide of flag applications which seems crushingly imminent.

Seriously though, whilst I can’t see any strong reason why the regulations should not be relaxed along these lines, and I think it would be good to see lots more flags flying in the right places, I don’t imagine that there is much of a pent-up demand for flying these various flags, and I’ll be amazed if these changes, if implemented, will make any real difference at all. 

It just seems surprising to me that with all the other challenges facing the planning system, and our flagging economy (pun intended) in general, the Government is giving priority to what to my mind is not, and never has been a planning issue.

Nevertheless, it will be interesting to see what response there is to the consultation; comments can be made until 30^th March.

 

Gareth Jones, Director

 

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