A CONTINGENT of MPS visited 10, Downing Street to make the case about the potential of Cornish critical minerals.

MPs Perran Moon, Noah Law and Anna Gelderd led a Cornish critical minerals industry delegation to meet with the Prime Minister’s economic advisor, Treasury officials, representatives from the Department of Business and Trade and the Office for Industry.

Discussions included the importance of Cornwall’s critical minerals projects to the economy, as well as the insufficient support that came from the Government. The meeting highlighted opportunities for tin, tungsten and lithium, with Fawzi Hanano from Cornish Metals, Dennis Rowland from Cornwall Resources and Jeremy Wrathall from Cornish Lithium presenting each mineral.

The meeting signals another positive development in the UK Government’s support for the Cornish critical minerals sector, which is becoming increasingly important as countries look to transition their economies away from fossil fuels and the global race for minerals heats up. The sector is largely dominated by Chinese operations, representing a sudden geopolitical rush.

Industry association representatives Alexandra Zawalna from Cornwall Mining & Geo- Resources Alliance and Kirsty Benham from Critical Minerals Association UK also attended the meeting on behalf of the wider Cornish industry, which includes Imerys British Lithium, Tungsten West and Cornish Tin.

Perran Moon, MP for Camborne, Redruth and Hayle, said: “I have said since I was first elected that the opportunities of critical minerals to transform deprived communities in Cornwall is one of our most powerful motivations. In Cornwall we find ourselves in the glare of worldwide economic headlights, sitting on a massive deposit of critical minerals that are the envy of the western world. But in taking advantage of these unique geo-resources, we must ensure that local Cornish jobs and local Cornish communities are the first beneficiaries, as well as UK plc.”

Noah Law, MP for St Austell and Newquay, said: “There's no other industry in Cornwall for which you can say if we come good on our strategy, this will be a billion pound industry within the next ten years. This would represent a fourfold increase in, and a resurgence of, a proud Cornish industry. It's crucial when mobilising investment from both public and private sources, that the good of local communities, jobs and prosperity is put front and centre of any pitch."