Cornish National Minority Working Group

The Working Group was established by the Council’s Constitution and Governance Committee in June 2015.

The Working Group has been reconstituted as an Outside Body with appointments being made by the Leader. This is in accordance with the Council’s Outside Body Framework.

Members were appointed in September 2021 and the first meeting took place in October 2021.

Members are:

Cllr Dick Cole (Chair)
Cllr Jordan Rowse (Vice Chair)
Cllr Linda Taylor
Cllr Kate Ewert
Cllr Andrew George
Cllr Julian German
Cllr Carol Mould
Bert Biscoe (Bard)
Will Coleman (Bard)
Ian Saltern (Bard)

How is the Working Group governed?

The Constitution and Governance Committee has agreed the terms of reference of the Working Group. These are to:

Lead, promote and celebrate Cornish National Minority Status
Support the development of Cornish as a community language
Take forward an action plan to address the provisions of the FCPNM and ECRML and to monitor its implementation
Formulate responses to the Council of Europe in respect of draft UK Government FCPNM compliance reports
Provide supporting information for the Council of Europe’s Advisory Committee Opinion on the UK Government’s compliance reports
Formulate responses with regards to future compliance reports
Act in an advisory role, liaising with the Council of Europe and UK Government in respect of the FCPNM and ECRML

Current plans of the Cornish National Minority Working Group

The Working Group maintains an action plan for its future activities. They hosted the first ever UK-wide National Minority summit in 2019. The group continues to work closely with Cornwall's MPs. This is to appeal to the UK Government to honour its commitment under the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities.

Members of the Working Group opposed proposals for a cross-border constituency under the Parliamentary Boundary Review. This began in January 2021 and is due to conclude in 2023.

In partnership with the Council, the Group continues to press the UK Government for stable central funding for Cornish culture and language.

Working Group Documents

Current key documents produced by the Working Group:

Agendas and minutes

Last Updated:

21/03/2024

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CornishMinority@cornwall.gov.uk