Gary Neville backlash continues as staff who he ordered to remove the Union Jack flag hit back, employees speaking to the Daily Mail.
The former footballer turned pundit turned property developer, faces criticism from workers at his £400million St Michael’s construction site in Manchester.
Neville demanded the flag be taken down instantly, citing its use in a “negative fashion” by “angry, middle-aged white men” to create division.
Workers have since accused him of suppressing free speech and being unpatriotic, noting that the Union flag was displayed alongside others, like a Moldovan flag, but only the Union flag was targeted.
Gary Neville’s builder backlash: ‘Angry’ workers who he ordered to remove Union Jack hit back and accuse him of suppressing free speech https://t.co/i6X1bgB18L
— Daily Mail Sport (@MailSport) October 7, 2025
A whistleblower from Domis sent me their terms of work which includes the threat of being dismissed for flying a Union Jackhttps://t.co/SikakbwLZ2
— Basil the Great (@Basil_TGMD) October 6, 2025
The incident sparked outrage among workers, who were instructed via “toolbox chats” to avoid political expressions on-site.
Neville’s comments, linked to his criticism of flag-raising campaigns tied to protests, have drawn further criticism online, with some labelling him a “champagne socialist.”
One employee exclusively told the Daily Mail: ‘He was walking past when he saw the flag flying on the fifth floor along with a Moldovan flag and another one.
‘He got on the radio to one of the workers and started asking why the Union Flag was up there. He only mentioned the Union Flag, not the other two – and said it had to come down.
‘Obviously he is the boss, and we are not going to argue with him. But Union Flags are normally put on building sites. It happens all over the country.
‘Gary Neville played for England, but he won’t let us put a flag up to celebrate the country where we live. It’s caused a lot of anger. This wasn’t discussed, we were just told.
‘He didn’t mention the Moldovan flag or the other. He only had a problem with the Union Flag.
‘Afterwards we had to do “toolbox chats” for everyone about political messages on the building site. Basically we had to explain why we can’t have flags, and we can’t express our political views because Gary Neville says we can’t.’
There were a total of three flags on the site, put on display by joiners working for the main constructor Domis Construction.
The worker, who spoke anonymously and defied an order not to speak of the incident, said the Union Flag was clearly visible from the street while the two others were more hidden inside of the site.
They added: ‘Some of us disagreed, but we had to take them down. Some are questioning who Gary Neville thinks he is to tell them what flags they can put up in their place of work. Flags are being put up all over the country.
‘They weren’t happy that they had to take them down, but they have to do what they are told – they don’t want to lose their jobs.
‘People who work on construction sites are from all over the place, all different countries and we all get on really well. So there was no ill meaning behind it. The lads were just putting flags up from where they are from.
‘Everyone else can put their flags up so why can’t we? They do when they’re playing for England, shall we say, and I am not a footballer.
‘Obviously it is bad times in this country at the moment, and this is the way people are trying to unite together. But in speaking out about it, Neville’s opened a can of worms.’
Neville said in his LinkedIn video post: “So I’ve just left my house and walking into the office, waking up obviously, seeing the news last night and the news this morning dominated by the horrific attacks within the Jewish community just about a mile from here. I was driving to Salford City last night, going down Littleton Road, seeing 60, probably 50 or 60 Union Jack flags.
“And on the way back I went down the parallel road which has got the Jewish community right at its heart and they’re out on the streets defiant, not hiding or in fear. I just kept thinking as I was driving home last night that we’re all being turned on each other and the division that’s being created is absolutely disgusting.
“Mainly created by angry middle-aged white men who know exactly what they’re doing. Funnily enough, on one of my development sites last week, there was a Union Jack flag put up and I took it down instantly. And some people might be watching this and thinking, well, Gary, you’re not very patriotic. I played my country 85 times. I love my country. I love Manchester and I love England. But I’ve been building in this city for 15, 20 years and there’s no one put a Union Jack flag up in the last 15 to 20 years, so why do you need to put one up now?
“It’s quite clearly sending a message to everybody that there is something you don’t like. The Union Jack flag being used in a negative fashion is not right. And I’m a proud supporter of England, of Great Britain, of our country, and we’re championing it anywhere in the world. It’s been one of the greatest places to live.
“But I think we need to check ourselves. We need to check ourselves and sort of start to think about, bring ourselves back to a neutral point. Because we’re being pulled right and left. We don’t need to be pulled right and left at all. I’ve always said this about, I played in a football team with a group of people from Manchester, a group of people from Ireland, Wales, Scotland, but also people from Africa, people from Asia, people from America, people from Europe, and we were a beautiful team, united as one.
“Brexit has had a devastating impact on this country, and the messaging is getting dangerous, extremely dangerous. All these idiots that are out there spreading hate speech in any form, and abuse in any form, we must stop promoting them. We must stop elevating our voices towards them. It needs to stop now and get back to a country of love, of peace, of harmony and become a team again.”
