Boundary Commission Hearings in Cornwall Council, Truro places the Cornish people on trial

News from Kernow Matters To Us:

The Boundary Commission Hearings taking public comment about the unlawful Devonwall proposal to gerrymander Cornwall's time honoured border commenced at 10am Thursday 10th November, 2016 in the main conference chamber at Cornwall Council, Truro.

After a brief introduction by the austere civil servant, Anita Bickerdike, Lead Assistant Commissioner for the Boundary Commission for England - South West (my, how those English civil servants love their titles!), a woman apparently obsessed with time but whose eventual opening delayed the first speaker by 20 minutes, the waiting public were allowed to approach the panel.

As one person later remarked, it was more like giving evidence at a trial for the speakers were called forward one by one and carefully filmed throughout, were obliged to identify themselves by name and address and then to step up onto a lectern placed near the centre of the large room and situated before the Boundary Commission representatives, themselves ironically sealed off by yellow and black hazchem tape and carefully watched over by security guards.

Giving evidence at trial indeed, for some of the more inexperienced speakers were obviously and quite naturally nervous with shaking hands and weakened voices as the gaze of the unelected civil servants rested variously upon them and their lap top computers.

'It's normal when government things happen in Cornwall' said one Cornishman afterward. 'Security guards, police tape and oppression everywhere. It's the way Westminster and its quangos keep control over us.We've seen it all before.'

And despite the fact that the hearings were deliberately set on a weekday when most Cornish folks are out earning their minimum rate of pay, speaker after speaker walked sometimes nervously to the lectern and gave their 'evidence' with Ms. Bickerdike interrupting to remind some that they were approaching their ten minutes. This is another civil service ploy of course, designed as it does to disrupt flow of speech and thought and denying many the time to properly finish what they were saying.

Ironically, and in true civil service (dis) organisational fashion, gaps appeared in the programme leading one member of the public to question the need for Whitehall issued watch faces to be pointed at - or was it the need for that other much loved tradition much enjoyed by Westminster and its various agencies notably long lunch breaks at public expense?

Several Cornish folks spoke in Cornish causing the people from the quango to look on in confusion. The thought in their minds were doubtless along the lines of 'how dare these peasants not address us in our superior English language?' Fortunately, a translator had been arranged and civil service faces relaxed somewhat.

This underlined Cornish difference and no matter what organisation they spoke for, or whether they quite simply spoke for themselves, the message was the same - no to Devonwall!

There were a very few exceptions of course. George Eustice MP informed all that he and the other MPs had already given up the fight but as one wit whispered, 'It affects their pay. They aren't interested in us or Cornwall.They're Conservatives of course.'

And so the trial continues and on into a second day.

As one Cornish lady said, 'We are second class citizens and have been afraid to speak out for generations. It's time for a change.'

So it is, but we doubt very much that the call for change and a return to democracy for Cornwall, very much ruled by an absent landowner and unelected quangos will occur any day soon.