Matt Hancock claimed to have ensured that more Union Jacks were shown at the Edinburgh festival

Flying more Union Jacks in Scotland is the key to strengthening the United Kingdom, according to a Conservative leadership candidate.

Matt Hancock has claimed one of his proudest moments as culture secretary was “making sure we got Union Jacks at the Edinburgh Festival”.

The Edinburgh International Festival said there was no such initiative last year, and Mr Hancock was accused of talking “nonsense” by Fiona Hyslop, Scotland’s culture secretary.

Mr Hancock said he would “make sure that the union is at the heart of everything that the UK Government does” if he wins the race to be the next Conservative leader and replace Theresa May as prime minister.

He told the BBC: “I want to see the UK Government do more to explain the