Palestine flag flown over Jewish cemetery in Plymouth ‘breached Equality Act’

The local council in Plymouth is reportedly under pressure to U-turn after allowing a resident to fly a Palestinian flag in his garden, which overlooks a Jewish cemetery in the city.

The flag, which is affixed to a flag pole on private land, has caused consternation in the local community, drawing several objections and even a police complaint, according to PlymouthPlus.

Peter Senior, the homeowner at the centre of the controversy, has claimed that he erected the flag in 2023 in protest at Israel’s war in Gaza and that it is not targeted at the Jewish community.

He told PlymouthPlus: “The intention of the flag is to show my support of the innocents who have now suffered 18 months of horrific treatment.

"To express my objection to my government’s response to this outrage and to elicit conversations with anybody who wishes to engage with me.”

Peter Senior, who erected the flag, said his critics were using an 'antisemitic trope' to suggest all Jews support 'the Zionist regime' in opposing his decision (Image: TikTok/@PlymouthPlus)[Missing Credit]

Senior also suggested that the complaints against him were, in fact, antisemitic, saying: “I believe it is an antisemitic trope to say that all Jews throughout the world support The Zionist regime’s genocidal behaviour.

"There has been a campaign to conflate criticism of the Zionist regime with antisemitism by Israel and the few countries that support their actions.

"This is a dangerous and cynical ploy that clearly will increase the incidents of antisemitism occurring. I am sorry if Jewish people consider my action with the flag as antisemitic. This is not the case.”

The council is reportedly reconsidering its original approval after a legal submission from UKLFI (Image: TikTok/@PlymouthPlus)[Missing Credit]

Plymouth City Council (PCC) initially ruled that it could not prevent it from being displayed as it fell outside the remit of its planning regulations.

In comments to the same outlet, planning officer Matthew Barks compared the flag to a “blank billboard”, suggesting that the fact that, as Palestine is not currently recognised as a state by the UK, it could not be addressed under deemed consent rules – which govern other political flags.

However, the outlet PlymouthPlus reports it may be reconsidering the decision following a detailed submission from UK Lawyers for Israel (UKLFI).

In an interview with the publication, Jonathan Turner, UKLFI chief executive, argued that the flag violates the Town and Country Planning Regulations 2007 and the Town and Country Planning Act 1990, while also claiming that the flagpole could require planning permission which, he said, does not appear to have been granted.

Turner also claimed that the flag could constitute a breach of the Equality Act 2010 due to its alleged impact on the Jewish community.

A PCC spokesperson said: “Our planning team and their legal team will carefully consider the interpretation of the points raised by barrister Jonathan Turner, Chief Executive of UK Lawyers for Israel and will be in touch with the complainant.”