Orkney Council removes flags put up on its property 'without permission'

Orkney Islands Council has removed a number of flags from Kirkwall town centre after they were put up “without permission”.

Union Flags and Saltires appeared on poles along the front of the grounds of St Magnus Cathedral facing Broad Street.

The flags appeared overnight between Friday and Saturday.

However, they were removed by the Orkney Islands Council on Tuesday.

A council spokesperson said permission was not given for them to be put up, adding: “As the flags were raised on council property without the correct permissions in place, they were removed as part of normal operational business”.

The recent spread of Saltire flags in Scotland follows similar scenes in England, where anti-immigration campaign groups have raised flags as part of a UK-wide protest called ‘Raise the Colours’, coinciding with demonstrations against housing asylum seekers in hotels.

In Scotland’s north-east, flags have appeared in Aberdeen’s Great Northern Road and South Road in Peterhead.

Aberdeenshire and Falkirk councils said workers faced abuse while attempting to remove Saltires which had been attached to street lights.

Police Scotland said any decision to remove flags was a “matter for the local authority”.