An outraged taxi driver has hit back at a local council that banned him from flying a Union Jack from his car.
Basil Brockhurst, an ex-armed forces serviceman who runs Basil’s Taxi, is locked in a battle with Shropshire Council, as representatives have told him not to fly the country’s flag from his cab.
Mr Brockhurst already flies the flag from his Shropshire home, and, while off-season, the property is also laden with Remembrance Day Decor, including a metal “Lest We Forget” sign proudly displayed on his front fence.
But he has struggled to keep similar decor on his car, including two UK flags that, on the surface, would be uncontroversial.
He is battling with Shropshire Council’s guidance stating that licensed vehicles cannot display signs advocating for social or political causes.
Shropshire Council passed guidance, the Hackney Carriage and Private Vehicles Licensing Policy, in 2023, which requires cabs not to display signage depicting “political, racial, cultural, sexual or potentially offensive language”.
The two flags Mr Brockhurst wants to fly are one Union Jack bearing the sigil of his army unit, the Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry, and a straightforward St George’s Cross with “England” emblazoned across the middle.
Speaking to GB News, Mr Brockhurst said he received an email from the council on October 17 stating he “was in breach of advertising standards” and had to remove them.
He said: “I was not happy, I was quite perturbed. 30 years of service Queen and Country in Northern Ireland, Iraq, then suddenly I’m told I cannot display the cross of St George or the Union Jack.”
GB News host Patrick Christys took to social media to slam the council’s decision. He wrote: “This is an absolute disgrace. The Union Flag is our flag. Everywhere you go now there are Palestine and Ukraine flags. They are much more ‘divisive’. This country has lots its mind.”
The cabbie is now receiving assistance from Liberal Democrat MP Helen Morgan and Shropshire Council’s deputy leader to have the policy partially rewritten.
Under revisions proposed by the local politicians, Shropshire cabbies will be able to display an A4-sized Union Jack in their cars.
The policy changes have now been greenlit, but they have seen some resistance from Shropshire councillors.
Green Party councillor Mike Isherwood said it is “needlessly divisive” to introduce flags to taxis, especially if it’s only privileging one nation’s flag.
He called for a “neutral policy” on waving flags, adding the current agreements best suit this goal.
Mr Brockhurst has taken quick advantage of the changes and has proudly emblazoned the bonnet of his car with a “Basil’s Taxi” logo that utilises a Union Jack.
