Cross of St George to fly over No 10 during England’s World Cup clashes
Theresa May said the show of patriotism will be repeated for the women’s tournament next year.
The Cross of St George will fly over 10 Downing Street for each of England’s remaining World Cup matches and for next year’s women’s tournament, Theresa May has said.
The Prime Minister told MPs she will be encouraging other departments across Whitehall to adopt the practice for the team’s remaining clashes in Russia.
Speaking in the Commons, Mrs May congratulated England on making it through to the next round.
She told MPs: “No 10 will be flying the England flag on the day of each of England’s matches from now on.
“We will be encouraging other government departments to do the same.
“I’m going to go further than my predecessors. Next year we will do the same for the women’s World Cup.”
Mrs May made the pledge during Prime Minister’s Questions after Tory MP Nick Boles called for a show of patriotism across public buildings.
The former minister had launched a petition to campaign for the move.
He said: “Across the country people are taking great pride in the disciplined performance of Gareth Southgate’s young and diverse team.”
Strict protocols govern which flags can be flown from government buildings and when.
No 10 is currently flying the Armed Forces Day flag to mark a week of celebrations in honour of Britain’s military.
A Labour source said that Jeremy Corbyn currently has a Cross of St George in his office, but declined to say whether the leader would fly the flag outside the party HQ or his own home.
“Jeremy is a strong football supporter and he is supporting the England team and I’m sure he will find his own way of expressing that,” said the source.
Meanwhile, Scotland Secretary David Mundell said he was “happy” to fly the England flag from the Scotland Office – and expected other departments to reciprocate if Scotland reach the next World Cup finals in Qatar in 2022.
Asked on Twitter whether he would be following the PM’s call for Whitehall departments to display the Cross of St George, Mr Mundell replied: “Happy to do so as I am confident No 10 and other UK departments will be flying the saltire in 2022.”
