According to multiple reports, Billy Bragg and Sir Sajid Javid are backing a campaign promoting unity ahead of St George's Day. The campaign, run by social enterprise Grow Social Capital with support from the Jo Cox Foundation's More in Common and other groups, includes a 'virtual pocket museum' of 50 objects symbolising Englishness, selected from 3,000 public suggestions. Giant outdoor screen projections will be shown at Toynbee Hall in Aldgate, London.
Research for the British Future think tank found 39% of people in England would not display an England flag for fear of appearing to support the far right. The survey, carried out by Focaldata in February 2026 with a nationally representative sample of 2,426 adults in England including 684 from an ethnic minority background, also found 81% agreed they disliked it when the English flag is linked to racism or used to intimidate minorities.
St George's Day should be a day for celebrating the positive things we have in common – a day for recognising the sense of community that comes from the identity and values that we share in this place called England. Through listening to each other, we can find that common ground from which to resist hateful division.
According to Daily Express - UK News, Ross Kemp believes the St George flag has been 'hijacked by high-profile bigots' to weaponise it against people of different ethnicities or beliefs. He said St George's Day is an opportunity to declare that the flag is a unifying emblem, not a weapon to divide. Kemp admires a church and mosque in Birmingham coming together to march side by side for St George's Day, a massive event in Gravesend spearheaded by schoolchildren, and a faith leaders' gathering in London aimed at uniting diverse communities.
The Government has ruled out making St George's Day a Bank Holiday. Households can face fines of up to £2,500 for incorrectly raised flags.
St George's Day is a great day to celebrate what we all have in common. When people talk about what they value, what they trust, and what they share, it becomes easier to build understanding. I’m glad my suggestions of the local bobby and war memorials made the final cut.
This is far from a new phenomenon – the National Front attempted the same before – yet it remains a serious concern.
What's important is that you care about your fellow citizens, feel a sense of belonging here and embrace the values that bind us together. Fairness. Decency. Looking someone in the eye and treating them with respect. Queueing. Getting on with things, even when times are hard. Discussing the weather. Complaining about the football. That's the England I recognise. And it's why I admire the people who are working tirelessly to unite communities this Saint George's Day. I admire the church and mosque coming together in Birmingham to march side by side, to celebrate their solidarity and dedication to a shared England.
I'm particularly fond of the massive event organised for Gravesend spearheaded by schoolchildren. The faith leaders' gathering in London aimed at uniting their diverse communities on our patron Saint's day. There's an enormous amount taking place, and it is these individuals who represent the genuine patriots of England. Because what they're achieving is constructing our nation, fortifying it, and imbuing the flag with significance rather than merely brandishing it.