UK Government ignores Cornish Language

Joe   Friday, April 15, 2005, 20:12 GMT

Mebyon Kernow – the Party for Cornwall has been accepted as a full member of the European Free Alliance.

At the General Assembly of the Alliance held in the European Parliament the political parties which make up the European Free Alliance voted unanimously to admit MK.

The European Free Alliance is a federation of progressive autonomist and regionalist political parties from throughout Europe, with which MK has had informal links for a number of years. Political parties within the EFA include Plaid Cymru from Wales, the Scottish National Party and the Union Democratique Bretonne from Britanny.

In the European Parliament, the EFA is allied with the Greens. At the present time, their 45-strong Greens/European Free Alliance Group is the fourth largest in the Parliament.

The General Assembly also backed two motions concerning Cornwall – unanimously.

· Calling on the Westminster Government to allow a referendum on the question of a Cornish Assembly to be held in Cornwall as soon as is practically possible.

· Calling for Cornwall to be recognised as a distinct entity/region within the European Union, with its own Euro-MP and representation on the Committee of the Regions.

Representing MK at the EFA’s General Assembly was Davyth Hicks, a Cornishman who works in Brussels as editor-in-chief of Eurolang – the European news agency for minority languages.

Mr Hicks addressed the meeting in both English and Cornish – probably the first time Cornish has been used formally in the European Parliament. He opened his address by stating:

“Lowen ov vy ow tos omma dhe gewsel orthowgh hwi yn kever Kernow ha Mebyon Kernow - an Parti rag Kernow, ha ow kovynn rag eseleth leun a'n bagas ma.

“It gives me and my party, Mebyon Kernow- the Party for Cornwall, great pleasure to be here in order to address this General Assembly and to apply for full membership of this group.

Davyth Hicks added:-

“In Cornwall, MK is making significant progress in elections at all levels and is playing a leading role in the Campaign for Cornish Assembly, which is winning increasing support from local people.

“The UK state has devised a new artificial region called the ‘south west’, and an EU constituency elected by proportional representation.

“We would like to stand in the European elections but Cornwall only makes up 10% of the entire south west seat – and it would cost a massive deposit of 5000 pounds. We would need a quarter of the Cornish vote just to save our deposit.

“This brings me to the democratic deficit that Cornwall faces and, more than that, a human rights issue. Even if everyone in Cornwall voted for us, we would not win one of the seven ‘south-west’ seats.

“Needless to say we do not feel represented in Europe at all. If we have ever wanted to raise issues in the European Parliament we have always approached Welsh MEPs.

“Working here in the European Parliament, I see a constant Welsh presence, a Scottish presence, but when it comes to the so called ‘south west office’ they are the invisible people of Europe, doing little to represent Cornwall on the European stage.

“We have to change this situation and we want Cornwall to have its own EU constituency. Cornwall has a population of half a million, bigger than some member and accession states, and the same as some successful autonomous regions such as South Tyrol. It is our right to be represented in Europe, but this will not occur until the UK lets us have our own constituency. It was in the late 1970s when MK stood in what was then a Cornwall and Plymouth constituency. In this MK won 10% of the vote; this may explain why the UK does not want a Cornish constituency.

“Moreover, when we have our own ‘region’ it means that we will be able to participate on the Committee of the Regions which, at a European level, is pushing for more powers and more influence for the regions of Europe. While trapped within the ‘south west’ we are missing out on this increasing influence and, therefore, investment.”
greg   Saturday, April 16, 2005, 17:03 GMT
Adam wrote : "Those regions would be the North West, the North East, the South West, the East Midlands, the West Midlands, South East, East Anglia and London".
It's symptomatic that English regions don't have a proper name.

"The Welsh are not English but, like the English, they are British".
Perhaps the Welsh are even more British than the English because their ancestors have always been living on Britain while the English came from Germany and Denmark. (Joking)
janner   Saturday, April 16, 2005, 19:12 GMT

Adam wrote: “ What the English want is ONE parliament for ALL of England, and we WILL get it.”

Do they ? – who says and where would this English parliament be ? – oh, of course London ! We forgot – the world revolves around London - never mind the Devon Celtic Movement and Wessex and Yorkshire Regionalists and others !
The UK isn't so much a state, but an extension of London and the further from London you are the less relevant you become (and the more irrelevant it becomes !). A similar lack of funding and apathetic treatment by central government can be found in other more remote parts of the UK.
Adam   Sunday, April 17, 2005, 10:04 GMT
"Perhaps the Welsh are even more British than the English because their ancestors have always been living on Britain while the English came from Germany and Denmark"

However, a larger percentage of English people consider themselves British than Welsh people do.
Adam   Sunday, April 17, 2005, 10:10 GMT
"Do they ? – who says and where would this English parliament be ? – oh, of course London "

Of course they would. Why wouldn't they? The Welsh wanted autonomy, the Scots wanted it, the Americans, Australians, Canadians etc wanted autonomy from Britain, so why wouldn't the English also want autonomy from Britain?

And I don't think the English parliament would be in London. I think York or Oxford would be good places, or Birmingham, because it's in the centre of England.

And Yorkshire and "Wessex" nationalists are almost as crazy as Cornish nationalists. If we gave independence to counties such as Cornwall and Yorkshire and obscure regions such as "Wessex", there would be no England left.
Adam   Sunday, April 17, 2005, 10:16 GMT
"the world revolves around London "


Well, in some sense it DOES. If London was an independent nation, it would be the 6th largest economy in the EU. London's economy is larger than Austria's economy or Denmark's economy. Its population of almost 10 million is twice as large as the whole of Scotland, larger than Wales, larger than Ireland, larger than Denmark, larger than Sweden, larger than Norway, larger than Finland etc.

So, in British eyes, the world does revolve around London.
www   Sunday, April 17, 2005, 10:17 GMT
"I think York or Oxford would be good places, or Birmingham, because it's in the centre of England."

No way !! 25million Londoner/South-Easterners would oppose any parliament way uup North, Brum or carrot crunching Oxford !!!!

Which region do you inhabit Adam ?
Damian   Sunday, April 17, 2005, 10:39 GMT
I hope I'm not getting obsessed with Cornwall and things Cornish.....brother Celts and all that....but I can't wait to go down there but it's not realistic at the moment. Speaking from a Scottish persepective Cornwall sems quite unlike any other "English" County.

I have read as much as I can about Cornwall just recently and it seems to have had a huge influx of "immigrants from England", like older people retiring there because of the mild winter climate and others setting up businesses linked to the proximity to the sea..Cornwall itself literally being a peninsula jutting out into the Atlantic with wonderful beaches all along and that the Cornish coastline is by far the longest of any other County in the UK. All that surfing too with the huge Arlantic rollers. No wonder it's population is exploding.

That increase in population would surely be diluting the traditional Cornish character though, surely? If the hardcore of "native Cornishwo/men are determined to preserve their Celtic traditions AND Language then surely they would have to see that all the "emmets"* do the same? Perhaps the atmosphere of Cornwall is such that it imbues all the incomers with the Celtic spirit and they will join in to turn Cornwall into Kernow? Some hopes.....look at the Brits (mostly English) in Spain...hardly over enthusiastic in absorbing and adapting to local culture and Language.

*Emmets.......that appears to be the local Cornish name for "incomers/foreigners/non-Cornish".
greg   Sunday, April 17, 2005, 10:59 GMT
"If London was an independent nation, it would be the 6th largest economy in the EU".

If the Île-de-France were independent, Paris would rank 5th. (pour rire)
Sander   Sunday, April 17, 2005, 12:30 GMT
=>If London was an independent nation, it would be the 6th largest economy in the EU<=

If the Randstadt in the Netherlands was independant it would rank 2nd.
Sander   Sunday, April 17, 2005, 12:37 GMT
Give me a kiss Adam and I'll poop your chute ! I'll wear my sexy cogs just for you loverboy.
/   Sunday, April 17, 2005, 12:39 GMT
Sexy Dutch clogs too !
Damian   Sunday, April 17, 2005, 13:54 GMT
If the Outer Hebrides was an independent nation then it would become the world's largest exporter of cockles and seaweed and anybody wishing to immigrate to the Islands would be forced to become fluent in Gaelic inside three months' residency or else they would be deported. Special concessions MAY be made in the case of people like ADAM as it would be more or less clear that there would be a complete inability to learn ANY "foreign" Language let alone Gaelic, but the only requirement for him to become a nationalised Hebridean would be that he transfer his ENGLISH megalomania to HEBRIDEAN megalomania. Then he would be allowed to become a citizen of the Independent Republic of the Outer Hebrides and made Minister for Cockles and Seaweed.
Jethro   Sunday, April 17, 2005, 14:34 GMT

Or we could offer Adam the post of Minister for Emmets or Chief Pasty Taster in our new Independent Cornish Assembly.

Thanks for the support of our Celtic cousins !

See you dreckly !
Sander   Sunday, April 17, 2005, 14:37 GMT
=>=>If London was an independent nation, it would be the 6th largest economy in the EU<=

If the Randstadt in the Netherlands was independant it would rank 2nd.<=


Oh my god,I just like Adam! Im turning into a monster!!!! Q:/