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Cornish devolution is the movement to increase the governing powers of theCounty of Cornwall.[1]
By the end ofKing Ine's reign (688–726), the West Saxon frontier had probably reached the modern western border of Devon. Anglo-Saxon expansion into Cornwall may have begun underKing Ecgberht (802–839), although the Cornish had their own king as late as 875, whenDungarth rex Cerniu is said to have drowned. Some level of Cornish independence may have continued into the 10th century, consistent withWilliam of Malmesbury's account ofKing Æthelstan's expulsion of the Britons from Exeter and establishment of the River Tamar as the boundary between Cornwall and Wessex.[2]
In 1066, much of Cornwall was invaded by theNormans,[3] andBrian of Brittany may have been made earl of Cornwall byWilliam the Conqueror and some Cornish people returned to Cornwall fromBrittany following prior invasion by theAnglo-Saxons.[4]
The peerage of theEarl of Cornwall was created and first appointed toCondor of Cornwall, a survivor of the royal lineage of Cornwall.[5]
TheDuchy of Cornwall was formed in 1337 by English kingEdward III for his first born son,Prince Edward, and a charter stated this would continue in the same manner for each eldest son of the English monarch. TheDuke of Cornwall is the title given to the holder of the Duchy of Cornwall, and the Duke holds some rights in Cornwall and owns the coastline and riverbeds around Cornwall as well as the significant profits from which are produced. These profits contribute to financial support of the English Duke of Cornwall.[6]
In 1497,Michael Joseph An Gof andThomas Flamank and a Cornish army marched upon London in protest of raised taxes byHenry VII who aimed to increase funding for a war against the Scots. The Cornish army was defeated and An Gof and Flamank were both executed. However, the rebellion may have influenced the decision by Henry to introduce theCharter of Pardon in 1508 which gave powers to the Convocation of theTinners of Cornwall (commonly known as theStannary Parliaments) to vetoEnglish legislation in Cornwall.[5]
TheLocal Government Act 1888 established Cornwall as anadministrative county and establishedCornwall County Council.[7]
Managing director ofGinsters Mark Duddridge has outlined what he believes to be key reasons that Cornwall would benefit from increased devolution powers citing:
The Cornish Constitutional Convention was formed in 2000 as a cross-party organisation including representatives from the private, public and voluntary sectors to campaign for the creation of aCornish Assembly,[9] along the lines of theNational Assembly for Wales,Northern Ireland Assembly and theScottish Parliament. Between 5 March 2000 and December 2001, the campaign collected the signatures of 41,650 Cornish residents endorsing the call for a devolved assembly, along with 8,896 signatories from outside Cornwall. The resulting petition was presented to the Prime Minister,Tony Blair.[9]
Cornish partyMebyon Kernow has called for the creation of a Cornish Assembly or parliament in light of the 2021G7 summit in Cornwall, stating: "...what better legacy could there be than parity with the other Celtic parts of the UK, such as Scotland and Wales, in terms of influence and investment, and a comprehensive devolution deal, which would deliver a Cornish Assembly or Parliament?"[10]
Since 2021 an "All Under One Banner" march has occurred annually on 19 March in Cornwall to both celebrateSt Piran's Day and promote greater autonomy for Cornwall and a greater discussion on its future.[11]
A report by theInstitute for Public Policy Research (IPPR), an independent think tank, suggested that Cornwall has "outgrown" the original devolution deal of 2015.
Sarah Longlands, director of IPPR North suggested that Cornwall needs "the power and resources to be able to get on and get the job done, rather than wait for central government to make the next move" and that based on their research "it is clear that Cornwall has made the best of the fairly limited decentralisation deal that it was originally offered." Longlands also suggested that due to the decline of the hospitality industry during theCOVID-19 pandemic and "the uncertainty ofBrexit, now is the time to give Cornwall real devolution which means that they have the economic powers and resources they need to support a strong and fair recovery.”[12]
Cornwall Council has outlined several areas in which they are seeking devolution of powers from central government:
In 2015 Cornwall became the first county of England to receive new devolved powers which included;
In 2016 authority for theCornish language (recognised under the Charter for Regional and Minority Languages in 2003) was transferred to Cornwall Council from the central government.[14]
In December 2022 atSpaceport Cornwall,Dehenna Davison the Parliamentary-Under Secretary of State for Levelling Up announced a package worth £360m transferring building and skills powers toCornwall Council. The devolution deal required Cornwall to create a new directly electedregional Mayor (Meryon in Cornish).[15] The powers were designed to give the council and Mayor/Meryon "greater control over transport budgets, building, skills delivery, and greater influence with government to tackle challenges of second homes"[16][17][18]
The council announced in April 2023, it would be abandoning the proposed devolution deal and the role of a directly elected mayor due to public opposition. The council would instead look into a smaller devolution deal.[19][20]
A cross-party motion led byDick Cole and supported by a total of 27 councillors is set to go to a meeting of Cornwall Council in April 2023 and states, “Cornwall Council resolves to inform the UK Government that we wish to commence negotiations for a more meaningful devolution settlement similar to those enjoyed in the other Celtic parts of the UK (ie. a National Assembly of Cornwall or Cornish Parliament).
“Cornwall Council also resolves to request a meeting between the Secretary of State and a cross-party delegation from Cornwall Council as a matter of urgency.”[21] The motion failed to pass in the Cornish council with 38 to 36 councillors voting against the motion.[22]
In July of 2024 Linda Taylor and Lord Hutton called on the new Labour government to give Cornwall a Minister for Cornwall.[23]
On the 16 October 2024Ben Maguire called on the government to give Cornwall a devolved Cornish Assembly, Labour MPPerran Moon also made a similar appeal for a deal akin to Wales.[24]
A motion and call led by Ben Maguire and supported by all other MPs in Cornwall alongside the Cornwall Council called on the government to start talks of a devolved Cornish Assembly and a Cornwall only deal.[25][26][27]
The 6 Cornish MPs discussed withAngela Rayner proposals for Cornish devolution, specifically opposing theDevon and Cornwall Combined Authority proposal on 18 December 2024.[28]
On the 23 July 2025 a motion was passed by Cornwall Council to have Cornwall formally recognised as the 5th nation of the United Kingdom.[29]
On the 18 September 2025, the Cornwall Council asked the government to grant Cornwall a referendum to become the 5th nation of the United Kingdom, without devolution.[30]
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