Why is the St George’s flag controversial - and is it legal to fly it?

England play their first match of the 2018 World Cup today - but not everybody is choosing to wave the St George’s flag.

The red and white cross remains divisive, and police are discouraging England supporters from showing it off in Russia amid fears of clashes between rival fans.

England supporters back home haven’t been shy about showing their allegiances, however. Lincolnshire man John Jupp has made headlines by covering the front of his house in a 1,250 sq ft (116 sq m) flag.

Until fairly recently, it was illegal to fly a national flag without permission from a local council.

So why is the St George’s Cross so controversial and what does the law say now?

What is the law?

Changes made to regulations in 2012 widened the range of flags you may fly in Britain, reports The Sun.

UK residents are now permitted to fly any national flag or any international organisation’s flag, as well as many different regional flags.

Before the changes, it was illegal to fly a national flag without permission from a local council, unless flown from a vertical flagpole.

A Peterborough family “fell foul of the regulations during the last World Cup, when they were threatened with prosecution for flying the cross of St George outside their home”, according to DevonLive.

“A compromise was reached when the city council said the flags could be flown but only on special occasions,” the regional news site adds.

What are the rules about flying the St George’s Cross?

According to the Department for Communications and Local Government, all flags must be kept in a safe condition; have the permission of the owner of the site on which they are displayed; not obscure, or hinder the interpretation of official road, rail, waterway or aircraft signs; and be removed carefully if asked by the planning authority.

Although there is not a specific offence related to flying the St George’s Cross on your car, you could commit an offence if it is obstructing your view or if there is risk that the flag could fall off and damage you or the car.

Why is it so controversial to fly the St George’s Cross?

The Union Flag and the St George’s Cross “have been tainted by association with the far-right”, says The Independent’s David Barnett. “Nobody seems surprised any more to see some bull-headed idiot draped in the flag and performing a Nazi salute,” he adds.

Mark Roberts, the deputy chief constable of South Yorkshire Police, warned fans not to take flags to Russia for the 2018 tournament, saying: “It can come across as imperialistic and cause antagonism.”

But Labour MP John Spellar lambasted that view, saying: “It may be that there are problems with organised Russian groups targeting foreign fans, and our police should be liaising with their Russian counterparts to deal with that.

“To come out with a load of sociological gobbledygook makes one wonder what on Earth the Top Brass in the police are thinking. I bet this doesn’t reflect the view of the public.”

Bosses at pub chain J D Wetherspoons have “also told its employees they must not display the St George’s Cross in any of their 880 pubs”, reports The Sun.

Instead, the company have handed out “World Cup bunting” that features every flag of each nation competing in the tournament.