The red and white flag of England will be flying above 10 Downing Street on Wednesday alongside the Union Flag to mark St George's Day.

It will be the first time in recent history that the two flags will have flown above the Prime Minister's official residence to commemorate England's national day.

Other government departments are being encouraged to follow suit under constitutional reforms aiming "to give British people a stronger sense of what it means to be British".

Whitehall will also for the first time be able to fly the national flags of Scotland and Wales on their buildings on St Andrew's Day and St David's Day.

The changes to protocol were introduced at the end of March, while restrictions on the number of days a year that government buildings could fly the Union Flag were lifted last year.

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport has even published detailed guidance on the arcane British rules of flag flying.

Only buildings with two poles can fly the flag of St George on Wednesday because the Union Flag takes precedence.

Single-masted establishments must stick to the Union banner.

Has the government gone flag-crazy? Is it really British to fly the flag?

Lord Goldsmith's suggestion that students swear allegiance to the Queen when they leave school has prompted a fierce reaction.

Civil rights lawyer Baroness Kennedy said the proposal made her groan and described it as a risible and empty gesture.

Teaching union boss John Dunsford of the Association of School and College Leaders told the BBC it was "a half-baked idea that should be left to go mouldy".

Goldsmith says he welcomes the debate, noting that similar cynicism greeted the introduction of citizenship ceremonies for new immigrants in 2004, which he says have been a great success.

He says it is up to the government -- if it accepts his recommendations -- to decide what form that ceremony should take.

But he told BBC radio on Tuesday that he personally favoured students swearing their loyalty to the Queen.

The ceremony would be just one of a number of measures to reverse a "diminishing sense of national pride", which include a national public holiday along the lines of Australia Day.

Has the reaction been too swift? Is there a place for an American-style oath of allegiance in our schools? Or is that just not the British way?

Identity Cards are on the way -- voluntary at first, but eventually the government wants them to be compulsory for everyone aged over 16.

The government's plan is for the cards to gradually become part of everyday life, issued alongside passports and used to prove entitlement to public services like free healthcare.

There has been speculation recently that Prime Minister Gordon Brown is cooling over making the cards compulsory, which would require parliament to pass new legislation.

Recently leaked documents have led to suggestions the programme is running way behind schedule.

Civil liberties groups such as Liberty and NO2ID are firmly opposed to the cards. The Conservatives and Liberal Democrats both say they would scrap them.

But LibDem Leader Nick Clegg has told Reuters in an interview that Brown can wait almost a decade to 2017 before pushing the issue of compulsion for all to a parliamentary vote -- assuming, of course, that he or a Labour successor is still in power.

Is that too long to wait to decide such a controversial issue?

Are you for or against nuclear power or somewhere in between?

The government gave the go-ahead to a new generation of nuclear power stations on Thursday.

Nuclear operators say they could have new plants running in Britain by 2017, which would help the government meet its 2020 goals for cutting carbon emissions to fight climate change.

Opponents say thousands of years of toxic waste make nuclear power not worth the risk.

Polls say the public is divided on the issue, with 44 percent saying companies should have the option of investing in new nuclear power and 37 percent disagreeing.

What do you think? Send us your comments.

Which is the greater health risk -- an unwanted pregnancy or the possible side effects of taking oral contraceptives?

That's the dilemma for the government, which is proposing that it should be easier for women to get the contraceptive pill.

It says women could obtain the pill from a pharmacy without getting a prescription from a doctor.

Health Minister Lord Darzi says women would be assessed first by a trained health professional.

But the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children says pressure on vulnerable young girls -- from parents, boyfriends and social workers -- could lead to other health risks being overlooked.

The Pill can cause blood clotting and thrombosis and may contain the long-term risk of cervical cancer.

What do you think? Send us your comments.

How frightening is London's Hanger Lane Gyratory System? It's just been named the the junction most feared by motorists in a survey.

The junction, a complex roundabout system linking the A40, the North Circular A406 and Hanger Lane, was rated by 28 percent of drivers as the one they were most worried about negotiating.

Birmingham's Spaghetti Junction (26 percent) and Marble Arch in central London (25 percent) were the next most frightening, according to the survey of 500 motorists by insurer, Highway Insurance.

What's your least favourite junction? Send us your comments.

How long should rapists be jailed?

The Conservatives are to review rape sentencing in the light of falling conviction rates and shortening sentences.

Conservative Leader David Cameron points to statistics showing Britain's rape conviction rate is the lowest of any leading European country, at less than 6 percent of reported cases, down from nearly a third 30 years ago.

Even when there are convictions, sentences have been falling, down to an average of just under seven years.

Cameron says the length of sentence must be "proportionate to the crime".

But how long should that be? Send us your comments.

On Monday the chairman of Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells Hospital Trust in Kent resigned after a government watchdog criticised appalling hygiene that contributed to outbreaks of a superbug that killed about 90 patients.

Today the same watchdog, the Healthcare Commission, said one in four acute and specialist hospitals in England and Wales did not comply with at least one of the government’s three standards on infection control.

It said it did not believe the hospitals were unsafe. But the watchdog’s chief executive, Anna Walker, acknowledged the public’s concern.

“We recognise that patients are genuinely frightened of catching a superbug in hospital,” she said.

Are you too scared to go to hospital? Send us your comments.

Age was no barrier for the great Liberal leader William Gladstone, who became prime minister for the fourth time at the age of 82.

But Menzies Campbell, a sprightly 66, has quit as leader of the Liberal Democrats amid falling poll ratings.

Leading LibDem MPs say “Ming” Campbell was a victim of ageism, particularly from the press, where cartoonists mercilessly portrayed him with a Zimmer frame and pension book.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown is a decade younger, while Conservative leader David Cameron, riding high in the polls, is just 41.

What do you think? Was Ming too old for the constant demands of today’s politics, with 24-hour news and regular newspaper polls?

Send us your comments.