Argument breaks out over Union Jack bunting in Welsh town centre on St David’s Day
An argument has broken out over Union Jack bunting that is up in a Welsh town centre on St David’s Day.
Local residents have been kicking off after the High Street in Prestatyn was decorated with Union flags as well as Welsh flags.
The Town Council initiative was commissioned as a dual celebration both for St David’s Day and the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee in June.
A Facebook post on the issue quickly erupted into a heated debate about Welsh identity, Wales’ history and cultural subjugation by England.
The Town council has said it wanted to replace coloured bunting hung across the High Street that had grown old and tired as part of its plans for the Jubilee and because it wanted to celebrate St David’s Day as well, it placed an order for Welsh flags at the same time.
Councillors say they opted to erect the Welsh and Union bunting at the same time in order to save on the costs of twice hiring cherry-pickers.
Sharon Frobisher, Mayor of Prestatyn and Meliden defended the move, saying: “It was a cost-effective solution that makes the High Street more attractive and supports local businesses.”
However, not everyone agrees, with one resident commenting: “You don’t see the union flag flown on St Andrews or St Patrick’s Day”.
“Welsh people just wish to be Welsh and have that respected in their own country.”
‘Don’t need to be reminded’
Another resident said: “We don’t need to be reminded that we are a colony on our patron saint’s day.”
One person said: “St David’s Day is understandable. We should have the Welsh flag up all year round.
“But the jubilee? It’s not being officially celebrated until June.”
But David Williams said: “Whether we like it or not Cymru is part of the UK at present so the Union Jack will always be a flag that we’ll see.
“I do understand the cost issue of doing them all at once as well. What we do need to question though really is our future within the UK and whether we’re really represented within the ‘union’.
“I don’t think we are so perhaps we won’t have to see the Union Jacks flown forever if we go our own way one day.”
Support our Nation today
For the price of a cup of coffee a month you can help us create an independent, not-for-profit, national news service for the people of Wales, by the people of Wales.
So Welsh identity in Prestatyn is all about the cost of a cherrypicker. Weak and barely credible excuse! Embracing a colonial mindset and all things English I suspect to be a more likely reason.
We had a great st davids day parade in town high st today attended by the children and young people of our 5 local schools. Much enjoyed by the familes and towns folk it unites our community most of whom are very happy in their adopted town and country. It is sad to see this unintentionsd but thoughtless outcome by Prestatyns Tory political leaders. When the Labour Party and later my own independent alliance group ran the Authority; we tried to see our own national day, the Armestice Day etc respected to as best we could the wishes of the… Read more »
This is what happens when you have a council made up by a majority of tories.
Typical divisive rhetoric. Blame “the Assembly” and not the Labour government.
Agree
What assembly is this?
An 80s pop band
Totally agree no Tory party in true democracy. Ban them.
That’s right, you can’t have real democracy if you allow people with different opinions to take part in the decision-making.
The Union flag has the Cross of St George, St Andrew and St Patrick but not St David.
Today of all days is St David’s Day, go figure.
If the Union flag had no Scottish representation do you think that the Scots would accept it, of course not, so why should we?
To those that say: ‘Welsh people died for that flag’. Yes they did, and the fact that there is no Welsh representation on it, is what disrespects their memories.
Kick all these English councillors out of wales 🏴 wales 🏴 is welsh not British
*Wales *Welsh
ffs oh sorry Ffs
You are so wrong…WE ARE THE BRITISH…read your history if you can read that is.
We are Britons NOT British
Same difference.
Unless you can somehow physically split the island of Britian in two, and drag wales to another part of the ocean, Wales will always be a British country.
The Queen is the Queen of England not the Queen of Wales thank God we are not on the BUTCHER’S APRON Tory’s are at it again looking for browni points from London
All the country’s that you named Are where the English BUTCHERD the local native people that’s why the union jack flag is known as the BUTCHER’S APRON
What the hell are those ugly sphincters doing dangling from Welsh houses.
Is Jamie Wallis the pornographer MP for Bridgend cleaning his shreddies again?
It’s St Davids Day not St Union Jack day! Some looney unionists will take any opportunity to try and overshadow something purely Welsh. This ‘Welsh’ council should at least try and pretend to be the sheep of the clothes it’s wearing.
Meanwhile Johnson addresses Welsh troops in Estonia under every flag you can imagine…. But
No Welsh Dragon of course.
With all the problems going on, only a privileged so-and-so with nothing better to do could complain about a piece of fabric. People need to get a life.
This is Tory led Prestatyn Town Council being extremely offensive and disrespectful towards our Saint’s day. Can’t even say that I’m surprised by their actions.
The butcher’s apron has no place in Cymru
Disgusting to have that nasty flag anywhere. More so when the black and yellow of Dewi are the only saints colours not represented on it. British flag shagging has no end to it.
When I saw the headline, I started mentally formulating a comment about the disturbing amount of union jacks in my home town high street lately, only to read the article and find out it’s my home town that’s being discussed! Spotted the flags last week and was immediately put off by them. Other towns in North Wales do not appear to be suffering such an indignity as flying their coloniser’s flag, let alone on Saint David’s Day, so why are we branded by the butcher’s mark? And it indeed does feel like a brand, a mark of ownership and subjugation.… Read more »
Seems like there might have been an element of provocation behind flying those union jacks whether it was part of the British washing programme or not.
If it’s cost they missed the opportunity of putting up the Christmas lights with the same cherry picker.
A cynical excuse by a council who’d like nothing more tha for Prestatyn to be in England.
Overall, the Devolved Nations are doing a better job at sorting ‘actual problems’ than the English gov, who insist on the UJ being more prominent than any other flag. So how about taking a swipe at the nationalists about 10 Downing Street.
By the way…. On the 1st of every March we in Wales celebrate St. David’s day. It has bugger all to do with Great Britain or the Union Jack. Get educated.
What a bunch of dinosaurs. They make Wales look archaic …
Was it Anarchic you meant to say? Perhaps thats what it takes to undo centuries of oppression.
The tories have the same objective towards Wales as Putin has for Ukraine, they’re just subtler than Russia’s direct violence that’s all.
People are just desperate to feel offended these days. Ukraine’s under invasion by Russia and these people are complaining that there was more than one flag at their parade, and insensitive enough to act like this was a territorial move by the English government, not the Welsh council that organized it.
Gosh not seen a “ z “ in organised for a while 😈. Not very British.?