Flags put up without permission removed from Kirkwall

Flags were raised in front of St Magnus Cathedral in Kirkwall

Orkney Islands Council has removed a number of flags from Kirkwall town centre as it says they were put up without permission.

Union flags and saltires appeared on poles along the front of the grounds of St Magnus Cathedral, facing Broad Street.

The flags appeared overnight between Friday and Saturday but were removed by Orkney Islands Council on Monday.

A council spokesperson said permission was not given for them to be put up.

"As the flags were raised on council property without the correct permissions in place, they were removed as part of normal operational business," they said.

It is unclear who attached the flags to the poles in Kirkwall or what the motivations were.

However, similar instances have taken place around the UK in recent weeks.

The raising of flags has become linked to debate surrounding immigration and asylum seekers, although some groups who promote the erecting of flags have insisted it is being done to protest against politicians in general.

Last week both Aberdeenshire and Falkirk Council said workers had been threatened while trying to remove flags.

Saltire and union flags were put up in Kirkwall without permission from the council

Aberdeenshire Council said it had requested the assistance of Police Scotland before the operation to remove the flags could resume.

And Falkirk Council said the saltires were put up without permission and posed a safety threat.

Renfrewshire Council said it made the decision to remove the flags in Paisley "for reasons of road and public safety" but that people were free to fly flags from private property.

Flags have also been put up without permission in Aberdeen's Great Northern Road and South Road in Peterhead and will be taken down.

Report from local democracy journalist Andrew Stewart.