Reform-run council tells residents to remove St George's flags or face no Christmas lights
The authority raised safety concerns over the displays.
A Reform-run council has urged locals who stuck up Union Jacks and St George’s flags to bring them down to make way for the village’s iconic Christmas lights.
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As several councils across Britain brought down hundreds of flags amid “Operation Raise the Colours” over the summer - Kent county council’s leader vowed to keep the flags stuck up “unilaterally by the people of Kent” flying.
But now, those displays risk being taken down to make way for its annual festive lights display.
The Reform-run authority told Harrietsham parish council the display- seen along the A20 every year for as long as residents can remember - can't be put up alongside the flags this year due to safety concerns.
The parish council has urged those who put up the flags to remove them, stressing it has not been permitted to take them down itself.
It also warned that the money spent on hiring the light decorations would be lost unless the Union Jacks were removed.
Read more: Labour-run council’s flag crackdown sees Remembrance Day poppy display axed
“This condition from Kent county council may result in the installation of the Christmas lights being unable to proceed as planned for 2025.
“Despite this, the parish council will still be liable for the hire cost, as the arrangements were in place before the permit was issued,” the parish council said on its website.
It added that it would be “disappointing” if the lights could not be set up, adding that “unfortunately this situation is beyond the parish council’s control”.
Harrietsham Parish Council chairman Eddie Powell said: “As the flags and street columns are not parish council property, we are not permitted to use public funds to pay for their removal.
“We are hoping that whoever installed the flags will be able to remove them in due course to allow for the festive lights to be installed as planned.”
It comes after the authority said in August it would not bring down any St George's or Union flags, unless they were deemed a risk to residents.
'Almost as if these people are blithering idiots.'
— LBC (@LBC) November 4, 2025
A Reform-led council says it's unable to put up Christmas lights because the England flags on the lamp posts pose 'a safety risk'.
James O'Brien and caller Simon can't help but laugh. pic.twitter.com/x5Nwvyl2ju
Stuart Jeffrey, a Kent county councillor for the Greens and leader of Maidstone borough council, branded the scenario “beyond ironic”, telling the Guardian the council “have been very clear that they are fundamentally supportive” of the flags.
Peter Osborne, Kent council’s Reform cabinet member for highways and transport, said: “We fully support communities coming together to celebrate Christmas with festive lights – it’s a valued tradition that brings people together. “But safety must come first. Flags on streetlight columns pose a risk during installation, so they must be removed to ensure the lights go up safely and can be enjoyed by everyone.”
Kent county council leader Linden Kemkaran has previously said the union jack, the flag of St George and the flag of Kent are the “identity that we all share”, arguing “it is that identity that we need to focus on.”
It comes after Ms Kemkaran, who became council leader after Reform’s landslide victory in the May local elections, has presided over a series of scandals in her first few months in the job.
Last week, three more councillors were booted from the party, meaning five party members have been kicked out in total after a leaked video of a meeting showed Ms Kemkaran swearing as she told her colleagues to “suck it up”
.She said the council was in "a sorry state of affairs" after the clip was leaked by "sour grapes" within her party.