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LIBERAL DEMOCRAT PARLIAMENTARY TEAM FOR CORNWALL

Sir William McKay KCB Chair, The McKay Commission 3rd Floor 67 Tufton Street LONDON. SW1P 3QS 19th September 2012 Ref: DR/PE/120919(McKay) Dear Sir William, We are writing to you to submit our evidence to the Commission as you examine how the House of Commons might deal with legislation which affects only part of the United Kingdom following devolution of powers to legislative bodies in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. We appreciate that you initially sought submissions some months ago, but that other organisations and individuals have continued to submit written evidence and that you have held and are holding public hearings to take oral evidence. As Cornish MPs we attach a submission which deals with Cornwalls constitutional status, identity and heritage and how this impacts upon the Cornish peoples aspirations for devolution of decision making from Westminster and Whitehall to Cornwall. Whilst we understand that you are primarily concerned with the impact of Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish devolution on the House of Commons, we believe that consideration of the situation in Cornwall must be given to any assessment of the English question and any future proposals for an English Parliament, English decision making in the House of Commons or regional devolution in England and Cornwall. Our submission outlines the unique history, identity and heritage of Cornwall as a Duchy that is constitutionally and culturally quite separate from England. As we explain, given Cornwalls heritage and identity as a celtic nation of the United Kingdom in the same way that Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales are, we would also request that you hold a hearing in Cornwall along the same lines as the public hearings that have already been held in London, Edinburgh, Belfast and Cardiff. This would allow you to see evidence of the living Cornish identity for yourself, as well as giving organisations and individuals in Cornwall to submit evidence from a Cornish perspective. We would be happy to provide a list of relevant Cornish constitutional, community and cultural organisations which you might like to engage with or invite to a hearing in Truro if that would be helpful. Yours sincerely,

Stephen Gilbert MP St Austell & Newquay

Dan Rogerson MP North Cornwall

Andrew George MP St Ives & the Isles of Scilly

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The McKay Commission - tmc.independent.gov.uk

Cornish Identity Cornwall has a unique identity, characterised by its own language, culture and heritage and it is important to consider this distinct identity when thinking about English decision-making in the House of Commons, or any question or consideration of an English Parliament or regional devolution and decision-making outside Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The Cornish identity remains particularly national in nature, and is one that is distinct from any sense of Englishness. Whilst some areas of England, Yorkshire or Lancashire for instance, can reasonably lay claim to a strong sense of identity, each of them fundamentally remain a regional English identity. In contrast the Cornish have historic national or ethnic origins. Self-identification is a key indicator of Cornish identity. At the 2001 Census, 34,000 people in Cornwall and 3,500 people across the rest of UK recorded their ethnic group as Cornish1 rather than English. It can be argued that this figure under-represents the amount of people who would define themselves as Cornish, as respondents had to make a proactive effort to ignore the confines of the Census, take the time to tick the other box on the Census and write in Cornwall, as opposed to simple tick boxes for English, Welsh, Scottish and Irish identities. Figures from Cornwall Councils school census showed that in 2011, 41% of school pupils recorded themselves as Cornish, up from 34% in 20092. The Cornish language too is an indicator of Cornish national identity. The Cornish Language, Kernewek, has been recognised for Cornish identity3 by the UK Government under the European Charter for the Protections of Regional or Minority Languages, and receives government funding in recognition of its importance to Cornish culture and life. Research from Peter Donnelly, professor of statistical science at Oxford University and director of the Wellcome Trust Centre for Human Genetics, shows that the Cornish have a distinct genetic profile too, which is different to other groups in the rest of England.4 In Cornwall St Pirans Day on 5th March and the St Pirans flag that is flown from homes, businesses and Council buildings, as St Andrews Day and St Davids Day are celebrated in Scotland and Wales. St Pirans Day celebrations are marked across the Duchy and are an unambiguous expression and celebrate Cornish identity, culture, heritage and language. Cornwall is also part of the Celtic Congress which was founded in 1902 to promote the knowledge, use and appreciation of Celtic languages and culture from Wales, Scotland, Ireland, Brittany, The Isle of Man, and Cornwall. Cornwalls Constitutional Status Historically, Cornwall is recognised as a distinct territory. Far from being another county of England, Cornwall is a Duchy and a distinct constitutional entity as part of the United
1 2

Cornish National Minority Report, Page 8 BBC News, http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-devon-16391310 3 th Hansard, 5 November 2002 4 http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science-news/9336923/Welsh-and-Cornish-are-the-purest-Britonsscientists-claim.html

The McKay Commission - tmc.independent.gov.uk

The McKay Commission - tmc.independent.gov.uk

Kingdom, but not part of England. In his submission to the Commission (Submission 26) Sam Trerises appendices (The Cornish National Minority Report 2 and the Cornish Assembly The Next Push document from the Cornish Constitutional Convention) demonstrates the evidence for this. Some have even questioned whether the Duchy as an institution gives Cornwall a position more analogous to the States of Guernsey and Jersey as possessions of the Duchy of Normandy. The advocates of this argument hold that while Cornwall has de facto been treated by the United Kingdom Government as a part of the UK and indeed of England, it is in fact extra-territorial to the UK. In the Cornwall Foreshore Case 1858 the Duchy of Cornwall affirmed that at the time of the conquest (1066) Cornwall itself was a great seignory (a sovereign authority) in the hands of a Lord independent of the (English) Crown and this great seignory has continued to exist from that time to the present (1858). This some 141 years after the union. As the Cornish National Minority Report outlines, the Cornish have a long term association with a specific territory which echoes the Duchys strong and separate historical tradition as a Celtic nation of the United Kingdom. Just as Wales has, since the Victorian era, re-asserted its language, identity and sense of nationhood Cornwalls national identity needs to be recognised and reflected in the governance of the Duchy. It is this identity which has informed campaigns for constitutional recognition for Cornwall. The Cornish Constitutional Convention is a cross-party organisation which has been engaged in a longstanding campaign for recognition of Cornwalls constitutional status. This campaign has engaged sensibly and in a measured way with the current government and the previous one about the Cornish question, and in 2005 a signature with 50,000 declarations of support for a Cornish Assembly was submitted to the Prime Minister. 50,000 signatures represents over 10% of the Duchys population, which is a significant measure of popular support for devolution of decision making. Cornwalls integrity as a region in its own right has been recognised by the European Union in the form of Objective 1 and Convergence regional funding in order to tackle the unique needs and challenges of the Duchy. This European recognition of Cornwall as a distinct region of the EU echoes the arguments that we have made about Corwnalls Celtic heritage, history, peripheral geography and distinct culture. At the last census, Cornwall has around half a million people. There are several sovereign European states with fewer people than Cornwall, which suggests that in terms of population, Cornwall is well able to work as a devolved region of the United Kingdom. The Duchy also has a unitary authority that has always been willing to take on more powers and evolve into more of an assembly-style body. Decision making for Cornwall An English Parliament, or an element of English decision making in Westminster by excluding Scottish, Welsh and/or Northern Irish MPs from decision making on certain parts of legislation, or whole bills, also presents a problem for Cornwall. People in Cornwall do not see themselves as English, but as Cornish. Any proposals for English decision making in the House of Commons will also need to take account of Cornwall and its people so that they

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The McKay Commission - tmc.independent.gov.uk

are not ostracised or denied their identity in national decision making. Including Cornwall in with the rest of England is not only problematic from a constitutional perspective as Cornwall is not a part of England, but also in delivering from the unique and specific needs and circumstances of the Duchy, which as we have mentioned above, has been recognised by the EU and its awarding of convergence funding. Indeed, the current affinity and sympathy that exists between MPs from the Celtic nations demonstrates the weaker position which Cornwall would face were it to be included in some sort of England only arrangement. Prior to the last Census, Dan Rogerson moved an amendment to the regulations, seeking a Cornish tick box. Several Welsh MPs backed this measure which is an indication of the cultural ties which might be lost, leading to further difficulties in advancing Cornish issues. It is also important to say that a level of decision making at a South West region level would not be any better at delivering for Cornwall. For devolution to be meaningful we are clear that it needs to operate on boundaries that are recognised by local people. The previous Labour governments agenda was based around a South West region that stretched from Lands End in Cornwall to Tewkesbury in Gloucestershire. People in Cornwall certainly did not have any affinity to an artificially constructed South West region, and any future consideration of regional politics and decision making needs to bear this in mind. The regional agenda under arbitrary regional boundaries has now been dropped, and as such there is a vacuum of regional decision making. If the Commission is looking to examine regional decision making, then in light of the history and heritage of Cornwall as a nation that people clearly identify with, it is our belief that any level of government or governance below the Westminster level should recognise Cornwall in its own right. The people of Cornwall have long favoured their own solution to bringing decision making closer to them, through devolution to an assembly. But it is imperative that any distinction of decision making, either in the House of Commons or in new devolved assemblies, must recognise meaningful boundaries, and that means recognising Cornwall in its own right. Liberal Democrat Parliamentary Team for Cornwall Andrew George MP, Stephen Gilbert MP, Dan Rogerson MP

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