Cornish Guardian backs tickbox campaign

I am very pleased to see that the Cornish Guardian has backed the campaign for a Cornish tickbox on the 2021 census through its editorial in this week’s paper. It is as follows:

It’s time for the Government to give all Cornishmen and woman the recognition they deserve. Mebyon Kernow leader Dick Cole has led a delegation from Cornwall to Westminster to call for the Cornish tickbox option to be included on the next national census.

This cost-neutral gesture would allow Cornwall to be recognised on the same level as its Celtic cousins, Wales, Scotland and Ireland, all of which enjoy the privileges of a tickbox in the census.

In the last census in 2011, 13.8% of people in Cornwall self-identified as Cornish, using a blank box in the “other” section. Since then, Cornwall Council has been leading the campaign for change ahead of the next census in 2021.

Mr Cole, a fine champion for all things Cornish, correctly states that “the Cornish were officially recognised as a national minority more than three years ago.” The Council of Europe made a specific recommendation to the Office of National Statistics that it should consider the possibility to identify as Cornish in the next census. The time has come for ministers to embrace this simple but significant act.