Canseco: Canadians picky about which flags belong at city hall, poll shows

Flying the flag

Photo: City of Vernon

New flagpole encouraging community groups to fly flags

In the last two months of 2025, some lawmakers in British Columbia and Calgary questioned the long-standing practice of raising certain flags in public spaces. In November, OneBC attempted and failed to pass legislation in British Columbia’s Legislative Assembly to limit the display of flags on provincial property to Canadian, provincial and municipal ensigns.

Several municipalities allow for foreign flags to be flown to commemorate events such as the independence of a country or a specific festival. In December, following an eight-to-seven vote, Calgary city council enacted a ban on flying foreign national flags at the municipal plaza.

When we ask Canadians about displaying flags at city halls and provincial legislatures, the responses are varied. More than two in five (43 per cent) think it is appropriate to raise the flag of the United Kingdom, while more than a third (36 per cent) label this gesture as inappropriate.

Support for a waving Union Jack is highest among generation Z (49 per cent), dropping to 45 per cent among millennials, 44 per cent among generation X and 37 per cent among baby boomers. Canada’s oldest residents are the least interested in the presence of the United Kingdom’s flag in municipalities and provincial legislatures.

Only in British Columbia do we find a majority of residents (52 per cent) expressing no qualms about the Union Jack in this context. The proportions are lower in Saskatchewan and Manitoba (47 per cent), Alberta (46 per cent), Ontario (45 per cent) and Atlantic Canada (44 per cent). Unsurprisingly, the rating plummets to 32 per cent in Quebec.

When Canadians ponder other national flags, the numbers shift dramatically. Half of Canadians (50 per cent) think it is inappropriate for municipalities and provincial legislatures to raise the ensigns of any country that is not the United Kingdom, while 27 per cent believe this is an appropriate practice.

The animosity towards flying the flag of a foreign country on a pole administered by a provincial legislature or municipality rises with age. More than a third of generation Z (36 per cent) and millennials (34 per cent) see nothing wrong with this situation, but support drops to 23 per cent among generation X and to 17 per cent among baby boomers.

There is a split when Canadians assess the raising of ensigns that represent social causes, such as the rainbow flag or pride flag. While 44 per cent consider their presence on provincial and municipal grounds as appropriate, 39 per cent deem them inappropriate.

Millennials are more likely to accept flying flags related to social causes (49 per cent) than baby boomers (43 per cent), generation Z (also 43 per cent) and generation X (42 per cent). The severe discrepancy is political. Majorities of Canadians who voted for the Liberal Party (62 per cent) or the NDP (54 per cent) last year think flying these flags is appropriate, but only 33 per cent of Conservative Party voters feel the same way.

Public support is higher for flying flags that represent a local sports team, something residents usually notice at the start of a season or during a team’s play-off run. More than half of Canadians (56 per cent) think this is an appropriate course of action for provincial legislatures and municipalities, while 24 per cent disagree.

The level of support across Canada is slightly higher (61 per cent) for flying flags used by Indigenous peoples in Canada or that reference Indigenous causes. A third of Canadians (33 per cent) find this practice inappropriate.

There is wide cross-generational agreement with flying flags used by Indigenous peoples, from a high of 67 per cent among generation Z to a low of 58 per cent among baby boomers. This time, majorities of Canadians who voted in 2025 for the Liberals (70 per cent), the New Democrats (60 per cent) or the Conservatives (55 per cent) are in agreement.

The results show that a blanket policy to manage flags that are not Canadian, provincial or municipal would create unease. Across the country, displaying ensigns that promote Indigenous causes and local sports teams is welcomed more widely than flying flags that appeal to social causes. Calgary’s city council appears to have hit the right tone by tailoring a policy that applies only to other nations, allowing the municipality to champion any cause or team it wants.

Mario Canseco is president of Research Co.

Methodology: Results are based on an online survey conducted from Jan. 11-13, 2026, among a representative sample of 1,001 adults in Canada. The data has been statistically weighted according to Canadian census figures for age, gender and region Canada. The margin of error—which measures sample variability—is +/- 3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.

This article is written by or on behalf of an outsourced columnist and does not necessarily reflect the views of Castanet.