Nigel Farage has accused Labour of "hating the English national flag" and warned it puts Sir Keir Starmer "at odds with working-class England".
The Reform UK leader came out swinging after Pensions Minister Torsten Bell suggested that Mr Farage should spend less time "worrying" about Union Jacks and St George's crosses being torn down.
Speaking to Sky News, Mr Bell said: “Look, my honest view is that if Reform spent more time worrying about improving public services rather than which flags they were either wanting up or wanting to ban, then the country would be a better place.”
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The Swansea West MP took aim at Mr Farage just hours after Reform UK announced all 12 of its local authorities have committed to keeping Union and St George's flags on lampposts.
Responding to Mr Bell's attack, the Reform UK leader delivered a damning verdict on Labour attitudes towards the St George's cross and Englishness.
Mr Farage said: “I think Torsten Bell reveals the real Labour Party.
“They hate the English national flag with a passion which puts them at odds with working-class England.”
Despite Mr Farage’s attack, Sir Keir was yesterday defended as a “patriot”.
Nigel Farage celebrating St George's Day | GETTYWhile the Prime Minister was preparing for his crunch White House summit, Downing Street appeared to reject any association with the Labour-run council of Birmingham, which is removing Union Jacks and flags of St George from lampposts.
“I haven’t asked him about specific cases of specific councils," the Prime Minister's official spokesman said.
“But what the Prime Minister has always talked about is pride in being British, his patriotism in that – not least with the Lionesses in the Euros – and patriotism will always be an important thing to him.”
“It’s a matter for those councils," the spokesman added. “But when it comes to the PM being a patriot, he’s been clear it’s important to him in the past.”
Sir Keir Starmer marks St George's Day earlier this year
|PA
The spokesman continued: “The PM’s always been clear about his pride in Britain, reflected in the fact we often have the St George’s flag, and other flags, flying in Downing Street.”
Despite No10 defending Sir Keir, a number of incidents have sparked public concerns about the Labour Party’s attitude towards Englishness.
Emily Thornberry was forced to resign from her position as Shadow Attorney General in 2014 after she was accused of “snobbery” by sharing a photo of a terraced house with three England flags and a white van parked outside.
Labour MPs were also said to have voiced their frustrations last year when campaign literature was covered with the Union Jack.
Pensions Minister Torsten Bell triggered a response from Reform UK leader Nigel Farage
| PASir Keir has also been unable to escape accusations of an anti-English bias after the Prime Minister came under fire for failing to display the flag of St George following his landslide victory in the 2024 General Election.
The Prime Minister was instead welcomed into No10 by crowds clutching British, Scottish and Welsh flags.
However, the British left has been accused of struggling to come to terms with Englishness for decades.
“In left-wing circles,” George Orwell wrote in his 1941 essay The Lion and the Unicorn, “it is always felt that there is something slightly disgraceful in being an Englishman and that it is a duty to snigger at every English institution.”
Mr Farage appeared to inadvertently echo Mr Orwell’s criticisms during an interview with GB News to mark St George’s Day.
Dover & Deal MP Mike Tapp spoke to GB News earlier this year about Labour's relationship with Englishness
| PAThe Reform UK leader said: "It's as if, to the North London intellectuals, the very thought of Englishness is almost abhorrent.”
Despite Labour's long-standing patriotism problem, trade unionist Paul Embery, ex-MP Tristam Hunt and activist musician Billy Bragg have all proved that left-leaning thinkers believe there is room for Englishness in the Labour Party.
Speaking to GB News earlier this year, Dover & Deal MP Mike Tapp defended Labour from snipes on the issue of Englishness.
The ex-army intelligence officer told the People’s Channel: “When we talk about patriotism, be it British or English, that means standing up for the country and what we’ve already seen from Labour is fixing the NHS and reducing waiting times, which impacts everybody.
“We’ve put £1,400 extra in millions of workers’ pockets through raising the minimum wage, we’ve been trying to stabilise the economy after inheriting an absolute mess and putting more police on the streets to combat anti-social behaviour.”
Nigel Farage celebrating England's goal at the pub in the 2024 Euros | PATaking a direct swipe at both the Tories and Reform, Tapp added: “Patriotism is about service. The Tories failed to serve, given they cut the military to its smallest size since the Napoleonic times. Cut the police by significant numbers. The NHS was left completely on its knees and tanked the economy.
“When it comes to Reform, if you’re fawning over Putin, then you don’t want what’s best for this country and they’ve voted against all of the measures that will help working people across the country.”
Sir Keir also managed to take a veiled swipe at Mr Farage during his St George’s Day address.
"That flag doesn't belong to me as Prime Minister," Starmer said. "It doesn't belong to my party, the Labour Party, or to any group or political party.
"It belongs to all of us, to England in all of its wonderful diversity. And we should be proud of that flag and we must never concede it because it's an expression of our values and our patriotism."
The Prime Minister also vowed to "wrench the flag out of the hands of those who want to divide this nation and reclaim it for good", adding: "That’s what we must do for our country, for English decency, honour and fairness."