Can we tone down the vulgar flag waving?

 As a rule (with the exception of loyalist communities in Northern Ireland), we Brits have historically not gone in for overt displays of patriotism and flag waving. However the post-Brexit culture wars have resulted in a recent trend of tying flags to lamp posts for some reason. This is seen by many people as rather vulgar at best and eerily reminiscent of certain political movements from the mid 20th century at worst. In Scotland, where 45% of voters voted to leave the UK in 2014, many see the union flag as a symbol of oppression, as is also the case among nationalist communities in Ireland and Wales. What was originally intended as a symbol of national unity has been co-opted by the far right, and its image has been tarnished by racism and politics. So the adoption of this livery by Great British Railways has been somewhat controversial, with the Chief Executive of Transport Scotland apparently being "furious" at the branding appearing at Glasgow Central low level station. Ironically, Scotrail uses a stylised Saltire in its livery.

Back in 1948, British Rail experimented with a blue livery before settling on green for express locomotives, with black used for freight locos. Carriages were initially carmine and cream, with all-over maroon becoming standard later on. Blue was eventually introduced for electric trains, then after the modernisation of the 1960s, blue was adopted as a standard colour. However it was plain blue with grey window surrounds; there was no attempt to add any union flag elements until Network SouthEast introduced its "toothpaste" livery in the 1980s. Even then, the colour scheme was restricted to a subtle red and white stripe that ran the length of a train. 

Great British Railways isn't even the first organisation to slap a union flag on its vehicles, either. In 2014, P&O Cruises for some reason decided to do away with its traditional plain white hull and buff funnel and slap a stylised union flag on the front of its ships. The result looks honestly rather vulgar, and detracts from P&O's traditional image.

The name, as well, is an odd choice. "Great British Railways". Why not just "British Railways" or even "British Rail"? It's a recognised brand and won't be confused with GB Railfreight (a private freight operating company). The addition of "Great" feels like it was inspired by Boris Johnson, makes the name more of a mouthful to say and is honestly rather cringey. Are the government afraid that "British Rail" is associated with run-down trains, line closures and pre-packaged sandwiches? Is the rename meant to imply that the trains will be great? If so, I expect a lot of people will be disappointed.