Flags go up on lampposts in Shrewsbury to support England at World Cup

Flags have again appeared on lampposts in Shrewsbury – but this time supporting the England football team.

For months, the Union and St George’s flags flew from several lampposts in the town as part of an England-wide movement to add the national symbols to street furniture.

The were mainly put up by the Raise the Flags Shrewsbury Plus group, which had a fundraiser to support the efforts.

They said they did it as a symbol of national pride and protest against the Government. However, some residents were critical and said the flags were intimidating and provocative, and intended to caused division.

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A counter-group called Lower the Flags subsequently sprung up and posted videos of its masked members pulling flags down.

In April, Shropshire Council said it would remove “unauthorised flags” and charge those responsible for the costs.

The local authority later said its members had been threatened over the ongoing issue, and urged people to report incidents to the police.

The Raise the Flags group said it would step in to remove the flags, saying it did not want taxpayers to have to fork out for the cost of removing them for a second time.

Shropshire Council said that orders with its maintenance contractor was set at £13,000 to remove the flags.

However, because some flags had already been removed, the council instead incurred charges of £5,300.

The local authority said it removed 30 flags in total from Meole Brace, Telford Way, Heathgates Island, Mount Pleasant Road, Sundorne Road, and Hereford Road.

Now, more flags have appeared on the A49 heading towards Dobbie’s roundabout. However, as well as St George’s flags being flown, there are also some showing the Three Lions of the England national team.

Thomas Tuchel’s side are currently two wins away from winning the World Cup for the first time in 60 years, with England playing Argentina in the semi-finals tonight (Wednesday).