US Vice President JD Vance has urged Britons to “push back against the crazies” who take offence at the flying of the Union Jack and St George’s flag, in his latest intervention into British politics.
The 41-year-old Republican’s remarks came after he was asked by Fox News to comment on the controversial “Operation Raise the Colours” campaign that has swept across Britain in recent weeks, sparking fierce debate over national identity.
The grassroots movement, which began in Birmingham and East London, has seen residents defiantly hanging English and British flags from lampposts and street furniture, only to have them removed by councils in London and Birmingham whilst Palestinian flags were left untouched.
Speaking to Fox News, Vance drew parallels with American experiences during the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests, recounting how a friend had become fearful of hoisting the American flag during that period.
“You see the same things happening in Europe, and I think we just have to be on guard against this stuff,” Vance said. “It’s OK to be proud of your country. It’s, in fact, a good thing to be proud of your country.”
He added forcefully: “We should push back against the crazies who say we should be so ashamed of our culture and of our heritage that we shouldn’t be willing to fly a flag. It’s craziness. We got to call that craziness out. I’d encourage our European friends to follow suit.”
The Vice President’s comments represent his latest critique of British policies on free speech and expression, an issue he has repeatedly raised since taking office alongside President Donald Trump.
Earlier this month, Vance issued a stark warning to Foreign Secretary David Lammy during a meeting at Chevening House in Kent, telling him that Britain risked walking down a “very dark path” of “censoring rather than engaging with a diverse array of opinions.
During that encounter, Vance stated: “I think the entire collective West, the transatlantic relationship, our Nato allies, certainly the United States under the Biden administration, got a little too comfortable with censoring rather than engaging with a diverse array of opinions.
The Vice President has become increasingly vocal about what he perceives as attacks on free speech in Britain. At the Munich Security Conference earlier this year, he spoke out against what he called a “backslide in conscience rights” in the UK.
He specifically highlighted the case of Adam Smith-Connor, a 51-year-old physiotherapist and Army veteran, who was charged with standing 50 metres from an abortion clinic and silently praying for three minutes.
“A little over two years ago, the British Government charged Adam Smith-Connor… with the heinous crime of standing 50 metres from an abortion clinic and silently praying for three minutes, not obstructing anyone, not interacting with anyone, just silently praying on his own,” Vance said at the conference.
During a televised meeting between President Trump and Sir Keir Starmer in the Oval Office, Vance warned that attacks on free speech not only adversely impacted Britons but also American companies – “and by extension, American citizens.
Sir Keir retorted at the time: “We’ve had free speech for a very long time, it will last a long time, and we are very proud of that.”
The Trump administration has taken an increasingly critical stance towards British policies on free expression. The case of Lucy Connolly, a mother jailed for a social media post, was raised with the White House earlier this year.
This preceded a report from the Trump administration released this month which claimed that human rights in Britain had “worsened” in the past 12 months.
The report specifically highlighted threats of antisemitic violence and suppressions on freedom of expression in Britain. It stated that in the wake of the Southport attacks in July 2024, there had been an “especially grievous example of government censorship” and that “censorship of ordinary Britons was increasingly routine, often targeted at political speech.
The document also raised concerns about “buffer zone laws” which ban protests outside abortion centres. In April, anti-abortion campaigner Livia Tossici-Bolt, 64, was convicted after holding a sign reading “Here to talk, if you want” outside a Bournemouth abortion clinic. She received a two-year conditional discharge and was fined £20,000 for breaking a Public Spaces Protection Order.
The “Operation Raise the Colours” movement has exposed deep divisions in British society. Starting in Birmingham’s Weoley Castle and Northfield areas, the campaign has spread to Manchester, Bradford, Newcastle, Norwich, Worcester, York, and the Isle of Wight.
George Castle, claiming to be a founder of the Weoley Warriors group behind the initial flag displays, boasted on social media about amassing over 4,000 flags following donations exceeding £10,000. The group states they have “a common goal to show Birmingham and the rest of the country of how proud we are of our history, freedoms and achievements”.
However, anti-racism group Hope Not Hate has revealed that key organisers behind the campaign include “hardened and extreme far-right activists”, including longtime Tommy Robinson ally Andrew Currien, who runs security for Britain First.
The movement has received support from Conservative politicians, with Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick photographed climbing a lamppost to hang a Union Jack in Newark. He attacked “Britain-hating councils” for removing flags and predicted in a Telegraph article that “the country is heading in the wrong direction. But the British people have shown during the last week that there are reasons to believe a comeback is on.”
Councils have defended their actions, citing safety concerns and planning regulations. Birmingham City Council, Tower Hamlets, and City of York Council are among those that have removed flags, arguing that while flags may fly freely on private property, lampposts and public highways remain subject to regulation.
Labour MPs have been divided on the issue, with some supporting councils’ right to remove unauthorised displays whilst others, like Rachel Maskell MP for York, have called for councils to reverse removal decisions.
Vance’s intervention adds international dimension to what has become a heated domestic debate about national identity, immigration, and the boundaries of patriotic expression in modern Britain.
As the Vice President concluded in his Fox News interview, the issue extends beyond Britain: “It’s OK to be proud of your country. It’s, in fact, a good thing to be proud of your country.”
The controversy shows no signs of abating, with fresh protests expected this weekend as supporters and opponents of the flag displays prepare to face off in towns and cities across the nation.
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