When I issued my initial statement regarding the proposed
Parliamentary boundary changes in Cornwall on 28th September, I made
clear that I shared the strong feeling that many people in Cornwall felt about
these changes.
I also stated that I would consider how best to work to
change these plans.
Over the past few weeks I have had several discussions both
with people locally in Cornwall and in Westminster, including Government
Ministers, to seek the best way forward.
The reality is that the legislation for these new
boundaries was passed by the previous coalition government. The way the
legislation is set leaves very little room for any flexibility in the size and
therefore the number and make up of the constituencies in Cornwall.
We need to remember that these are legal arguments and we
have to be realistic about the reasons they can be effectively opposed. I have
considered the various arguments put forward seeking to oppose the new
boundaries. Unfortunately, none of them contain valid legal reasons to prevent
them.
Like many people, I had hoped that the Minority Status the
Cornish people now enjoy would provide a legal argument to oppose the cross
border seat with Devon. Sadly, legal advice obtained by Cornwall Council has
stated that this is not the case.
However, despite there being no clear legal reasons to
oppose these plans, in my heart, as a Cornishman, I know they feel wrong. And I
know this feeling is shared by many people in Cornwall.
This is an emotional response that comes from the deep
pride and passion we feel about our identity.
There are only two places where we can express our views on
this issue that will make any difference – in Parliament and to the Boundary
Commission.
It is my privilege and honour to be the voice of the
constituency of St Austell and Newquay in Parliament. Be assured that I have
been making your views known and will continue to do so. Much of the work in
Parliament is carried out in individual meetings. However, there will be
opportunities for these views to be expressed in public debate in the coming
months and I will take these opportunities as they occur, whenever I can.
If you have views on these boundaries please contacted me
and make me aware of them so that I can represent you –
office@stevedouble.org.uk
The first opportunity for me to express the views that I
and many local people have on these proposals will be today at the South West
Boundary Commission Consultation in Exeter. I am pleased to confirm that I will
be attending this consultation. A copy of the oral presentation I will be
making there is below.
Oral
Submission to the South West Boundary Commission by Steve Double MP
My name is Steve Double and I am the sitting MP for the
constituency of St Austell and Newquay in mid-Cornwall.
I understand the legal restrictions that the Boundary
Commission has had to work within in drawing up these proposals. The legislation
passed by the previous coalition government is highly restrictive and leaves
little room for manoeuvre in Cornwall.
I do have a number of concerns with regards to the current
proposals and the way they impact on the constituency I represent. However, due
to the way the rules have to be applied I cannot see any other way of dividing
up the boundaries that would produce a better outcome local residents would
prefer.
I do still wish to place on record the concerns I have,
both for my own sake, and on behalf of the people of St Austell and Newquay
that I represent and the wider people of Cornwall.
Of particular concern to people locally is the splitting up
of what are locally known as the ‘Clay Villages’. These are the villages of St
Stephen, St Dennis, Foxhole, Nanpean, Whitemoor, Roche, Bugle, Indian Queens
and Fraddon.
These villages form a tight knit community bound together
by their shared history as being the centre of the china clay mining industry
for over 150 years. They have a great deal in common both historically and also
today.
It is very disappointing that the current rules mean that
there appears to be no way of making up the constituencies in mid-Cornwall that
enable these villages to remain in the same constituency.
But I wanted to place on record my concern on this and also
specifically the views of St Austell Town Council, whom I know have written to
the commission directly, on this point.
But of far greater concern to the people of Cornwall is the
matter of the proposed cross border constituency between North East Cornwall
and North West Devon.
As I am sure the commission is aware by now this issue
provokes strong feelings for many, myself included.
Now I will admit that having looked at the case being put
forward against the cross-border seat, many of the arguments are not valid
reasons within the current legislative framework.
I do not believe that Cornwall’s democratic representation
will somehow be weakened by sharing an MP with part of Devon as some claim.
Cornwall has had a cross border seat since MPs existed – with the Isles of
Scilly. I married a Scillonian and no one has ever suggested to me that the
islands lack political representation as a result of sharing an MP with west
Cornwall. Nor that somehow Cornwall’s border is compromised by sharing an MP to
the west.
Many MPs across the country represent areas that are
diverse and have communities from very different ethnic and cultural backgrounds
in a single constituency.
I have no doubt that an MP would be completely capable of
representing people from east Cornwall and west Devon effectively.
The Cornish border is not moving and part of Cornwall is
not joining Devon as some would say. This is about a line on a map that only
shows the area an MP will represent – nothing more.
Like many, I had hoped that the protected Minority Status
afforded to the Cornish people would provide a basis for a legal challenge.
Sadly, legal advice obtained by Cornwall Council has stated that our Cornish
Minority Status is not something that can be used to argue against a cross
border seat.
So, despite all of the rhetoric, in my view, there are very
weak reasoned legal arguments against this proposal.
I have grappled with this matter for the past few weeks. I
have had to ask myself the question, if there are not reasonable arguments
against this why do I, like so many other proud Cornishmen, feel so strongly
about this matter?
I think I have to be honest and admit it is a deep
emotional response.
The objection to this proposal for a cross border seat with
Devon is something we Cornish people feel. There may be no way of articulating
it in words that have any weight with the boundary commission, but that does
not mean we feel it any less.
The trouble is that when these maps are drawn they are done
so following strict legal guidelines. They are drawn using population
statistics, percentages and maps. Those guidelines do not capture the pride and
passion we, the people of Cornwall, feel.
And so I am simply here today to try to express to you a
clear message that I hope you can take away and feed back to the Government. I
will be doing the same within Parliament, but I wanted the commission to hear
it as well.
In the strongest possible terms the people of Cornwall
object to any proposals for a constituency that crosses the Cornwall-Devon
border.
It is no real surprise that people who do not share the way
we feel find it difficult to comprehend how strongly we feel about this issue.
Cornwall is unique so how can we expect others to understand.
We accept others will not understand. We accept others will
not agree with us. But what we cannot accept is our views not being respected.
Do not under estimate how deeply many Cornish people about
this issue.
It somehow stabs at the very core of the way we feel about
our county as Cornish men and women. We feel it is challenging our identity.
That in-built deep sense of Cornish independence is
provoked by the thought of our border being crossed. Even though it is only a
line on a map – it symbolises something far deeper in the Cornish psyche.
Sadly, under the current restrictions contained in the
legislation, I reluctantly admit I cannot find any valid reasons to oppose the
current proposals. If they are to go ahead I cannot offer a better alternative
under the current rules.
But my message is, please do not go ahead with these
changes as proposed. Please find a way to change them, in order to enable the
boundaries to be drawn along the Cornish border.
