London council bans Union flags and blasts those putting them up 'far-right'

A London council has carried a motion calling the campaign to fly British and English flags from lampposts and street furniture across the country as "far right". Tower Hamlets Council offices in East London were the scene of heated protests on Wednesday night when a group known as the Pink Ladies, who say they are calling for the protection and safety of women and children around asylum hotels, came face-to-face with pro-migrant and anti-fascist demonstrators.

Tower Hamlets borough, one of the most ethnically diverse parts of the UK, has seen flags put up as part of the "Operation Raise the Colours" campaign, whose organisers have been erecting national banners on lampposts and by roads across the country in recent months. Some claim the flag-waving is patriotic, but others believe it could have racial undertones.

In Canary Wharf, part of the Tower Hamlets Council borough, the Britannia Hotel has been the scene of anti-asylum hotel protests since the Home Office seconded the site to house migrants earlier this year. In the council chamber tonight a motion was tabled by Cllr Mufeedah Bustin and seconded by Cllr Abdi Mohammed called "Standing up to the far right and tackling uneven development on the Isle of Dogs".

The council said the motion carried had nothing to do with the Pink Ladies movement, and the group were not mentioned in the chamber or directly in the motion.

However, part of the motion states residents have valid "concerns around safety, security and equity" but that these concerns "have been allowed to escalate and become entwined with far-right narratives under the banner of keeping women and children safe."

Cllrs carried the motion declaring that "the raising of flags as part of an anti-immigration protest creates fear and division" and that the campaign was "led by far-right extremists".

A spokesperson from Tower Hamlets Council said: "At its full council meeting (Wed 8 October) Tower Hamlets Council passed a motion reaffirming its commitment to community safety, cohesion, and standing against hate and division.

"The motion recognised the borough's proud history of diversity and resistance to fascism, from the Battle of Cable Street to the present day.

"The council resolved to strengthen community engagement, particularly on the Isle of Dogs, support staff safety and uphold public order in the face of intimidation, expand the award-winning No Place for Hate programme, work with partners to counter far-right activity and misinformation, and invest in housing, advice services and community infrastructure to tackle the root causes of division.

"The motion also condemns attempts by organised far-right groups to spread division and commits to protecting all residents, regardless of background, so they feel safe, respected and heard."

The Pink Ladies were formed in the wake of the protests around asylum hotels, including the row between the Home Office and local council over the use of the Bell Hotel in Epping, Essex. After a number of court cases for sex offences involving hotel migrants and women and girls, the Pink Ladies claim they want to "protect our kids" and push for the safety of women.

Among the protesters was Sarah White, an activist who had previously protested outside the Epping hotel. She had sprayed her body pink for this demonstration. Liz Stevens, 61, a grandmother, said she had herself travelled from Epping. She said she never used to lock her door at home, but has done since the "hotel started housing migrants".

"What I don't want is this country's politicians dragging us through the mud with our kids in tow," she said.

Pink Ladies founder Lorraine Kavanagh, 70, said: "We want to put things in place to protect women and children from these men.

"In actual fact we'd prefer them in hotels because you've got a police presence and you know where they are. I'm not anti immigrant, the whole of Tower Hamlets was built on immigrants and it's enriched the area but when you start swamping an area with any kind of people it will cause friction."

The Metropolitan Police said a policing plan was in place and officers were in attendance, but that "no conditions" were imposed.