When the political leviathan Ian Lucas, Labour MP for Wrexham, recently proposed that Y Ddraig Goch, the Red Dragon flag of Wales, should be combined with the British union jack, few people outside Westminster New Labour circles showed much enthusiasm.

The media, though, was having a quiet news week and design suggestions for a combined flag appeared all over the place, many clearly ridiculing the idea. Two things were immediately apparent however: the first being that the red dragon is such a powerful and evocative symbol that it visually dominates a pattern, even one as iconic as the union jack; the second being the inconsistency in the way the dragon is represented on our own flag.

I did some research and discovered that, despite being the symbol of our nation, the design integrity of the red dragon has been entirely neglected since it was first introduced in 1959. There are many different designs are in use and many of the representations of the dragon are extremely crude. Neither the National Assembly nor the Wales Office at Westminster takes any responsibility for it. A company printing Welsh flags in China, say, for sale to tourists and rugby fans from the souvenir shops in Cardiff can reproduce an approximate dragon in more or less any style it wishes. Perhaps this accounts for the mythical beast beginning to resemble a small red dog that’s been beaten with stick?

There is no standard design for the dragon because heraldic tradition, which is overseen in Wales by the ancient English College of Arms in London, dictates that animals may be represented in any number of different ways. There are a few rules: the Welsh dragon always faces to the left (so it would face forwards on a shield worn on the left arm) and is ‘passant’ (shown walking with three feet on the ground and one forefoot raised); it is represented as having the body of a large four-legged reptile with a forked tongue, the eyes of an eagle and the wings of a bat.

So, I decided to respond positively to Lucas’s politically motivated proposal by following the heraldic rules to improve the representation of the dragon with the aim of producing a standard design that everyone in Wales could adopt. This is important because our flag needs to present a consistent image of our country to help with the promotion of industry and tourism.

Y Ddraig Goch symbolises our heritage and history. My aim was not to change it but to make it consistent, and it was important that it didn’t become clinical in the process. My new version of the dragon is powerfully defined. It is muscular, confident and sophisticated with its head and tail held high. Yet it is clearly recognisable as the Welsh national flag and it retains the charm of a traditional hand rendered illustration.

I entirely appreciate that many nationalists and republicans prefer not to recognise the flag because, like the Prince of Wales Feathers, it was imposed upon us by the English monarchy. Nevertheless, I think the dragon icon is integral to our national psyche and most of us rally to it emotionally.

I sincerely hope the new look will win approval from the Welsh public, the media, the National Assembly, Welsh sports bodies and commercial organisations. Digital finished artwork and pictures in a variety of file formats can be downloaded for free by following the link below. Government agencies and commercial organisations can use it free of copyright.

This new version of Y Ddraig Goch does not need the consent of the Queen, Prince Charles, the Westminster government nor even the National Assembly to become the standard pattern for the flag of Wales. If I have designed it well enough, it will be adopted democratically by common usage. Cymru am byth!

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FACTS ABOUT Y DDRAIG GOCH (THE RED DRAGON)

Although the Red Dragon has been associated with Wales for centuries, the current flag was adopted by royal decree only in 1959 after much lobbying, particularly by the Gorsedd of Bards.

It is often claimed to be the oldest national flag still in use although the origins of its adoption are lost in history and are the subject of myth and debate. There is a suggestion that the emblem is related to the Draco standards carried by the Roman cavalry during the occupation of Britain.

In heraldry, the dragon is considered to be the most valiant of horned creatures with a keen sense of sight, which affords it the ability to guard riches and treasures.

It is depicted as a large reptile with a forked tongue, an eagle's eyes, bat's wings, and four legs.

A creature that looks like a dragon with only two legs is a wyvern.

The Welsh dragon is ‘passant’, which means it is depicted walking with three legs on the ground and one forefoot raised.

Its ‘attitude’ is to face to the left as seen by the viewer. Thus the dragon would face forward when on a shield worn on the left arm.

The Welsh flag has an aspect ratio (depth to width) of 3:5. By comparison, he union jack has an aspect ratio of 1:2.

The green and white stripes of the flag are thought to be additions made by the House of Tudor, the Welsh dynasty that held the English throne from 1485 to 1603.

The oldest known mention of the dragon symbolizing Wales is contained in the Historia Brittonum (History of the Britons) written in the early 9th Century, although this volume is not regarded as a reliable account of the history of the period by historians.

The red dragon is popularly supposed to have been the battle standard of King Arthur. It is particularly associated in Welsh poetry with Cadwaladr, king of Gwynedd in the 7th Century.

Many legends are associated with the Welsh dragon. The most well known is the prophecy of Myrddin (Merlin) of a long fight between a red dragon and a white dragon. According to the prophecy, the white dragon would dominate at first although the red dragon would eventually win. This victory would lead to the recapturing of Lloegr (England; the lost country) and would be brought about by Y Mad Darogan. The fight between the dragons is believed to represent the conflict between the British Celts (who later became the Welsh) and the invading Saxons in the 5th and 6th centuries.

Y Ddraig Goch is the only flag of a constituent country of the United Kingdom not portrayed in the union jack. Wales was not included in the flag because it had been annexed by Edward I of England in 1282 and, since the Laws in Wales Acts 1535-1542, was considered to be a part of the Kingdom of England.

There have been proposals to include the dragon or the flag of Saint David (a yellow cross on a black background) in the union jack, but these have not met with much support either in Wales or in England.

Wales and Bhutan are the only countries to have a dragon on their flags.