The leader of a British activist group has been arrested, suspected of having caused alarm and distress by raising British flags in the United Kingdom. This is reported by The Telegraph and The Guardian.

Ryan Bridge, one of the founders of the patriotic group “Raise the Colours”, was arrested by Thames Valley Police for allegedly causing alarm or distress among residents in Oxford, England, on Tuesday.

In recent days, the activist group has posted footage of members raising Union Jack and Saint George’s flags (the British and the English flags) around the city.

In a video posted on Facebook after his release, Bridge said: “I have just been released – eighteen and a half hours for breach of Section 5 of the Public Order Act, which states that one must not cause alarm and distress among people. The world has gone mad”.

“That I raise the flag in my own country causes alarm and distress to certain members of the public. It is an absolute disgrace, and I have had enough, as we all have. We must march on, we must keep fighting. We have a struggle ahead of us”.

Bridge, from Bromsgrove in Worcestershire, said that his bail conditions meant that he was barred from the greater Oxfordshire area.

Labour-byråd vil fjerne «farlige» britiske flagg fra byens gater

Operation Raise the Colours is an online campaign that involves displaying the Union Flag and St George’s Cross in public places. Many local authorities remove the flags as soon as they appear.

Thames Valley Police confirmed that a 44-year-old man from Bromsgrove in Worcestershire was arrested at around 20:40 on Tuesday evening.

In a statement, the police said: “Last week, Thames Valley Police launched an investigation following reports of public order offences on Abingdon Road in Oxford”.

“Police are investigating these public order offences and have arrested a 44-year-old man from Bromsgrove in Worcestershire, suspected of causing harassment, alarm or distress with a racially and religiously aggravated element. He has been released on bail”.

Oxfordshire County Council on Monday issued a formal legal notice to Raise the Colours to “cease a specified activity” in response to the group’s “ongoing erection of flags across Oxfordshire”.

The leader of the county council, the Liberal Democrat councillor Liz Leffman, said that “the scale and persistence of this activity affects communities across Oxfordshire” and that residents have reported feeling “distressed, unwelcome and unsafe”.

“The widespread erection of flags by Raise the Colours is not an expression of patriotism. It is an act of intimidation and division that has a real and harmful impact on our communities,” said Leffman.

“Our teams removing the flags, together with residents who have confronted the individuals putting them up, have been subjected to abuse and threatening behaviour. This is entirely unacceptable”.

The council stated that it would consider all options, including civil and criminal measures, if the group did not comply with the demand in the letter.

Engelske flagg i England skaper engstelse blant helsearbeidere

Sky News has previously reported that English flags in England are causing anxiety among healthcare workers in the British public health service (National Health Service, NHS). One leader praises the “bravery” of black and Asian healthcare workers who continue to treat patients in areas that are “designed to exclude them”.

Several directors and managers in the NHS have stated that staff feel threatened by English national symbols, including when they are on home visits.