MK demands Public Inquiry into Duchy of Cornwall

Mebyon Kernow has re-iterated its call for a full Public Inquiry into the Duchy of Cornwall and Cornwall’s ambiguous constitutional relationship with the Crown.

This follows the announcement that the Information Commissioner has ruled that the Cabinet Office must release the guidelines on how the consent of “The Crown” and “The Duchy of Cornwall” need to be obtained before certain bills can be passed into law. 

The Information Commissioner has also ruled that the Cabinet Office must detail which criteria ministers apply before asking the royals to amend draft laws, which has been described by constitutional lawyers as “a royal nuclear deterrent.”

Cllr Loveday Jenkin has issued the following statement on behalf of MK:

“For many years, there has been a cloak of secrecy surrounding the position and role of the Duchy of Cornwall. The powers-that-be have also refused to debate the constitutional significance of the Duchy and how this relates to Cornwall’s past and future.  

“This recent ruling from the Information Commissioner may shed some much-needed light on the Duchy, but we need to go further.

“We need a full Public Inquiry into the Duchy of Cornwall and Cornwall's ambiguous constitutional relationship with the Crown, as well as the contradictions between Cornwall’s constitutional status and current administrative arrangements.”

MK anger at Cabinet plans to push ahead with privatisation

It has been reported that Cornwall Council’s Cabinet intends to push ahead with the privatisation of a massive range of council services including benefits, council tax, payroll, IT support, libraries and one-stop-shops.

I am appalled that the Cabinet intend to ignore the democratic will of Cornwall Councillors who, this week, voted by 46 votes to 29 votes to oppose such a move.

Where is the democracy at County Hall?

I will have plenty more to say on this topic in the near future but, for information, yesterday’s vote was as follows:

Councillors opposed to the privatisation of council services were 2 Conservatives, 16 independents, the one Labour councillor, 22 Liberal Democrats and all five Mebyon Kernow councillors.

Councillors who voted to support the privatisation of council services were 19 Conservatives, 9 independents and one Liberal Democrat.

There were 14 abstentions – 9 Conservatives, 2 Independents and 3 Liberal Democrats.

MK opposes “part-privatisation” of council services

Mebyon Kernow today opposed Cornwall Council entering into a multi-million pound joint venture project with a large private company, which would allow the private sector to deliver a massive range of council services including benefits, council tax, payroll, IT support, libraries and one-stop-shops.

The constitution of the unitary authority states that the decision whether to proceed with the scheme lies with the ten-strong Cabinet, which voted to seek final tenders on 30th July.

But the whole of the Council today debated a motion that stated: “it is not in the best interests of the people of Cornwall for the Council to enter into the proposed Strategic Partnership for Support Services,” in order to inform Cabinet members of the views of the wider membership of the authority.

The motion was proposed by Independent Councillor Andrew Wallis and seconded by MK Councillor Andrew Long (Callington). The Council voted by 46 votes to 29 votes to support the moton. There were a total of 14 abstentions.

Speaking on behalf of Mebyon Kernow in the debate, Cllr Long told councillors much of the evidence used to support the joint venture was “pure conjecture.” He rubbished the claims about savings and the creation of jobs, describing the promises as “pie in the sky,” adding we are more likely to see “bacon-clad flying mammals.”

He also slammed the lack of democratic accountability in the proposed arrangement and condemned the proposal as “full of risks” and urged the Cabinet to “reverse its decision.”

Also speaking at the meeting, fellow MK Councillor Loveday Jenkin (Wendron) blasted the transfer of staff and huge budgets into a private sector company, which she said would “inevitably result in worse terms and conditions for local workers.” She also described the project as “not in the best interests of Cornwall.”

All five Mebyon Kernow councillors (Dick Cole, Stuart Cullimore, Andrew Long, Loveday Jenkin and Neil Plummer) backed the proposal not to enter into the proposed Strategic Partnership for Support Services.

The Coalition needs to rethink its cuts agenda

My article in this week’s Cornish Guardian will focus on the struggling economy, and the failure of the Coalition’ aggressive austerity package. It is as follows:

In 2010, just prior to the General Election, twenty prominent economists signed a letter to the Sunday Times. In it, they supported George Osborne’s proposed approach to dealing with the economic problems facing this country. He, in turn, hailed it as a "really significant moment in the economic debate."

But the limited recovery of 2010 has stalled and it has been forecast that the Coalition will be borrowing £150 billion more than anticipated.

Last week, the New Statesman magazine contacted all twenty of the “experts” who signed the Sunday Times letter. They were asked them if they still supported the cuts of the Coalition.

Nine of the economists distanced themselves from Osborne’s actions, saying it was time for a rethink. One remained resolute behind the Chancellor, while the remaining ten refused to comment or, rather conveniently, found themselves on holiday.

There is certainly a growing view that the Government’s austerity programme and savage cuts are doing increasing damage to the economy – which has led to the first double-dip recession in generations.

Other economists are joining the debate. Joseph Stiglitz has challenged the Government to “call off the mad austerity” adding “no large economy has ever recovered from a downturn as a result of austerity.” He called on central government to do more to protect the needy, who are suffering the most as a consequence of the recession. He is also rightly demanding progressive taxation with the rich actually paying their fair share for once.

Robert Skidelsky has meanwhile written that “cutting expenditure when there is no other source of growth in the economy is a sure-fire strategy for recession.”

But is Mr Osborne listening? And will he acknowledge that this is also a "really significant moment in the economic debate"?

Here in Cornwall we desperately need the Chancellor to change direction. Recent figures show that Cornwall’s economic performance (GDP) is falling. It is now less than 72% of the EU average and it is declining faster than most other parts of the UK.

The scale of the cuts is immense. Take Cornwall Council as an example. It’s four-year budget has been slashed by over £490 million and councillors are forever being warned about a “graph of doom,” that suggests that further cuts would leave the unitary authority unable to be fund the most basic services.

That cannot be allowed to happen. Mr Osborne and the Coalition must rethink its whole approach to the economy and the funding of our vital public services

Tory MPs attack campaign for Cornish Assembly

In an article in today’s Western Morning News, Tory MPs George Eustice and Sarah Newton have attacked the campaign for a Cornish Assembly.

Insultingly, they call on campaigners to reject the politics of "victimhood and isolationism" by ditching the campaign for a Cornish Assembly, which they claim has "failed.”

They claim that winning significantly greater powers for Cornwall within the UK, through our own Assembly, would be isolationist and divisive. But they also argue that Cornwall’s unitary authority could take on some extra responsibilities which would protect Cornwall “as a distinct, self-confident but outward-looking and enthusiastic part of the UK." What hypocrisy!

The MPs clearly refuse to see Cornwall as a historic Celtic nation, and object to the fact that the other constituent nations of the UK have won significant levels of home rule for their countries.

They lack ambition for Cornwall, and the MP's claim to want more powers for Cornwall Council is contradicted by how the Conservative / Liberal Democrat Government is undermining the structures of local government with their cuts.

Let us not forget that democracy in Cornwall has been failed by central government over the last 15 years. 

Cornwall’s demand for an elected Assembly – which included 50,000 signed declarations – has been ignored.

Our structures of local government were trashed by the last Labour Government, in cohorts with Cornwall’s Liberal Democrats, when they cut the number of principal councillors from a total of 331 to 123 in the new centralised unitary authority.

And now we have the Tory and Liberal Democrat cuts which are undermining democracy further. The lack of funding means councillors are forever being presented with a “graph of doom” saying that the cuts mean we will simply not be able to fund basic services and this is being used as a cloak to promote the privatisation of public services.

So much for democracy in local government, but this is no doubt what George Eustice and Sarah Newton actually support.

I am out of Cornwall today, but have done an interview on Radio Cornwall. I will comment more fully on the article in the coming days.