A SHOPKEEPER has won a two-year planning battle to fly the Yorkshire flag.

National planning officials have granted the Ken Warne supermarket, in Richmond, permission to display a flag featuring the traditional white rose.

Director Peter Warne said he wanted to fly the flag to mark the store's commitment to local produce.

Richmondshire District Council initially rejected the planning application.

Officers said that while national flags such as the Union Jack were allowed, planning regulations forbade the Yorkshire flag.

However, the store appealed to the Government planning inspectorate after taking advice from a consultant.

The planning inspectorate agreed that the store could fly the flag from a pole at first floor level.

Mr Warne is delighted with the outcome. He said: "We are proud of being a retailer specialising in the sale of Yorkshire and local produce and we wanted to demonstrate this by flying the county flag.

"It seemed so ridiculous that we could fly national flags like the Union Jack or St George's red cross without planning permission yet not a county flag, that we decided to challenge it."

Peter Featherstone, head of development control at the council, said: "We came to a view about the proposal and it was rejected.

"Mr Warne exercised his right to appeal and the planning inspectorate found that it was acceptable."