Flag Flying at Westminster

Westminster is often referred to as the English parliament but if that’s the case then England must be the only nation on earth that doesn’t have its national flag flying over its parliament. With this in mind I wrote to the Black Rod’s Office and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) in 2004 to ask whether the Cross of St George could be flown over Parliament on St George’s Day.

This is the reply I received:

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport issues guidance to all Government Departments on the days for flying the Union Flag. These include State Opening of Parliament, Remembrance Day and the Birthday of Her Majesty the Queen and other members of the Royal Family. On St George’s Day all Government Buildings in England that have more than one flag pole, are instructed to fly the Flag of St George alongside the Union Flag, provided the Union Flag is flown in a superior position.

The Houses of Parliament only has one flagpole, therefore the Union Flag is the only flag flown on the appointed flag flying days. Additionally it is not considered appropriate to fly the St George’s Flag on the Houses of Parliament as the UK Parliament is responsible for issues that affect the entire UK and of course is made up of MPs representing constituencies from Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, as well as England.

In Scotland, the Union Flag is flown in the superior position on all Government buildings on the appointed days for flag flying, with the Scottish National Flag, the Saltire being flown on buildings with two or more flag poles. The only exception is St Andrew’s Day, when on buildings with multiple flagpoles the Saltire is flown in the superior position to the Union Flag.

Not considered appropriate! The Black Rods Office informed me that Parliament had not flown the English flag on St George’s Day:

No, the St George Cross was definitely not flown above Parliament on St George’s Day this year. It could have been if we had two flagpoles, we don’t however and the instruction was only to fly the Union Flag on that day.

David Lammy at the DCMS had this to say in 2005:

On St George’s Day the St George’s flag is flown on all Government Buildings in England that have more than one flag pole. This is along side the Union flag, with the Union flag in a superior position. The St George’s flag is not flown on the Houses of Parliament as it is a Royal Palace and therefore only flies the Union flag and the Royal Standard in line with other Palaces. The Houses of Parliament only has one flagpole, therefore the Union flag is the only flag flown on the appointed flag flying days.

So Parliament only has one flagpole and it has to fly the Union Flag.

A few years later, in 2009, the BBC published this article ‘Parliament to fly three union flags all year round‘:

Currently one union flag is flown from the Victoria Tower of the Palace of Westminster, but not the building’s other two flagpoles.

So Parliament suddenly has three flagpoles? Well, as it turns out, the Parliamentary Estate has three flagpoles (Victoria Tower, 1 Parliament Street and Portcullis House), but the ‘St. George Flag is never flown on the parliamentary estate as each building on the Estate only has one flagstaff‘.

To bring this story up to the present day. On St George’s Day 2021 the flag of England was flown from a flagpole on the Parliamentary Estate for the very first time when an additional three new flagpoles were installed in New Palace Yard on the initiative of the Speaker, Sir Lindsay Hoyle.

So once a year the parliament that governs England flies the flag of England to mark our national day. An ‘honour’ that the British also extend to their other territories and dominions.

So there you have it. If you ever wondered why the flag of England doesn’t fly over the ‘English Parliament’; it’s because a) it’s the UK Parliament and the English flag isn’t considered appropriate for the UK Parliament, and b) it’s a Royal palace and they only fly the British flag or the Royal Standard.

The next time someone tells you that Westminster is the English parliament, share this post with them.