Latest news from KMTU - Truro European City of Culture; Tories to ditch Cornish Minority Status?; What does it mean to be Cornish in 2017?

News from Kernow Matters To Us:

Truro City of Culture

“Westminster not interested in Cornwall. We must look elsewhere” KMTU supports Capital Of Culture Bid

Read all about it here: https://cornishstuff.com/2017/01/30/westminster-not-interested-in-cornwall-we-must-look-elsewhere-kmtu-supports-capital-of-culture-bid/

We recommend the new newspaper 'Cornish Stuff' incidentally. It's readership is growing meteorically, as fast as KMTU can process new membership applications!

Tories planning to ditch Cornish national minority status?

Read all about it here: https://cornwalldevelopersparadise.wordpress.com/2017/01/28/tories-planning-to-ditch-cornish-national-minority-status/

We have been flooded with concerned messages since Dr Bernard Deacon's revelation of MP Scott Mann's letter which showed this MPs utter confusion between the EU and the Council of Europe.  

As we all know, following much guidance from Winston Churchill, Britain was a founder member of the Council of Europe way back in 1949.

The Council of Europe is an international organisation focused on promoting human rights, democracy and the rule of law in Europe. Founded in 1949, it has 47 member states, covers approximately 820 million people and operates with an annual budget of approximately half a billion euros.

Now it appears Scott Mann wants us out of not only the EU but also the Council of Europe (CoE).

This is concerning as Cornish inclusion in the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities (FCPNM) is dependent on Britain's continued membership of the CoE.

We have also seen this information repeated in other letters received by our members as well as the incorrect information that FCPNM does not relate to housing or development policy which of course it does, specifically Article 16.

We do appreciate that Scott Mann is rather young and inexperienced but ‘from the mouths of babes’ as the old saying goes!

This incredible announcement by MP Scott Mann also affects the Scottish, Welsh and Irish people amongst others and so we have informed our contacts in those Countries and MSPs, MWA and others ready for Mr Mann's actions. Naturally, we have also alerted the Council of Europe themselves.

Further, our Chair was interviewed live on radio this morning about Mr. Mann’s announcement further spreading the news of what really lays in the minds of the Conservative controlled Westminster Government.

You are invited: WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE CORNISH IN 2017?

A Focus Group Discussion

Among topics which will be covered:

- Status of the Cornish language.

- What does it mean to be Cornish?

- Experiences of people who have moved to

Cornwall in recent times.

- Cornwall’s relationship with Westminster.

The session is linked to research for a MA Cultural Geography dissertation relating to Cornish Culture & Identity at the Faculty of Geography & Earth Sciences,Royal Holloway, University of London.

LOCATIONS

Penryn – Penryn Rugby Club Clubhouse, Friday 10th February

7:00pm

Redruth – Cornish Studies Library, Saturday 11th February

10:30am

Rescorla – Rescorla Centre, Sunday 12th February 2:30pm

Newlyn – Newlyn Trinity Methodist Church, The Orchard

Room, The Centre, Chywoone Hill, TR18 5AR. Monday 13th

February 6:00pm

Facilitator: Ben Gilby

ben.gilby.2014@live.rhul.ac.uk

Postgraduate Geography Research Student,

Royal Holloway, University of London.

Postgraduate Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society

Communications Manager, Penryn R.F.C.

Vice-President of the Cornwall R.F.U.

KMTU continues to grow!

A warm welcome to new members. Our membership now numbers in the hundreds and additionally via our social media outlets, we have tens of thousands of followers, many of whom go on to join us. Further, we have now taken up an offer by the newspapers and have a monthly column in the Cornish Guardian and sister publications. We are frequently contacted by the media including overseas media which recognises that we are the voice of the Cornish people and indeed, the people of Cornwall.

Odds & Ends

Our Freedom of Information request to view material relating to the Westminster Government’s cynical decision to suspend funding for the Cornish language has twice been declined by the Department for Communities and Local Government. We have therefore prepared a comprehensive case and submitted it to the Information Commissioner. This has been acknowledged by them. We know why the DCLG and certain MPs want to keep the facts from us. We just seek firm evidence before we publicly name and shame.

A report sent to the Commissioner of the Metropolis concerning the Daily Express newspaper and our allegation that in comparing the funding, now halted, of the Cornish language has resulted in a rise of ISIS related activity in Britain, the newspaper has incited racial hatred, has now been acknowledged by the Metropolitan Police who are investigating this complaint.

Receipt of our paper submission to the Boundary Commission quango concerning the ‘Devonwall’ cross border constituency has been acknowledged by that unelected quango. Many of our speakers addressed the Commission in person when they came to Truro. They have also noted strength of feeling and overwhelming public opposition to the silly and ill thought out proposal.

Please may we invite you to sign a petition to save the  ‘Longreach’ mental health facility, Redruth?

Despite Boris Johnson’s promises and lies made during the EU referendum when we were told millions would be spent on our NHS, now the Conservative Government are after closing Longreach Hospital in Redruth, Cornwall which means a denial of service to the severely mentally ill. Many of our members are public service employees and were shocked to read of this. This is terrible and shows what we are fighting against!

Newspaper article here: West Briton article: http://www.cornwalllive.com/petition-set-up-to-save-longreach-mental-health-unit-at-redruth-facing-closure-by-nhs/story-30093816-detail/story.html

Petition here: http://www.thepetitionsite.com/240/406/187/save-longreach-house-mental-health-unit-from-closure./?taf_id=32919613&cid=fb_na

Again, our Chair has been interviewed live on Pirate FM where he denounced Boris Johnson as a liar and

produced copies of Johnson’s speech and promises made in Truro when he waved pasties around like a banshee, photographs of Johnson on the Brexit battle bus that day and a later letter from the Department of Health denying all knowledge of the promised funding boost and outlining the financial cuts.

Bearing in mind that representative democracy is now in its death throes and that more and more recognise the fact that the MPs simply cannot be trusted (a recent IPSOS MORI poll placed them lowest of the low with only 15% expressing any trust in them to tell the truth compared with nurses, teachers, police and other public service workers soaring above them!), a large number of KMTU members were very pleased to meet up with an expert legal professional on Saturday 28th January for a briefing about the laws concerning protest. Thank you all for attending and we were pleased that extra seating could be found! We also sincerely thank the speaker! A pie chart is attached which underlines the fact that although large numbers voted for and against EU membership during the referendum, a large number didn’t bother voting at all. We have spoken with many of those who didn’t vote and the main reason was a complete mistrust in the Westminster Parliament which has shown itself to be a distant, self-rewarding, unrepresentative cesspool in recent years and the one institution where root and branch reform is long overdue.

Gans oll an gwella / with best wishes

John, Teresa, Craig, Tony, Matt, Mike, Clive, Ronan, Samuel & Mark

Elected Members of the KMTU Steering Group