TOP level meetings were due to take place in London this week in the campaign to give people in Cornwall the chance to identify themselves as Cornish in the 32021 census.

Cornwall Council was due to meet representatives of the Office for National Statistics and other bodies.

Following the decision by the UK Government to officially recognise the Cornish as a national minority in April 2014, the council has been pushing for the Cornish to be treated equally with the other Celtic nations – Irish, Welsh, Northern Irish and Scottish. 

While the other Celtic nations could tick a box to identify themselves in the 2011 census, the Cornish could only write Cornish under the ‘other’ option. 

Although 14% chose to self-identify themselves as Cornish in this way, so far the Cornish will not be allowed a tick box in the 2021 Census. 

The ONS held a population and public policy forum in Westminster to outline its vision for the 2021 census and its research to date focussed on race and ethnicity, sexual orientation and gender identity.  Councillor Dick Cole, leader of Mebyon Kernow The Party of Cornwall, represented the council at the meeting. 

The council says its campaign received a welcome boost earlier this year when the Council of Europe made a specific recommendation to the ONS stating it should ‘take the necessary measures to include the possibility to self-identify as Cornish, through a ‘tick-box’ in the next census.’

Since then the council has held a number of discussions with senior officials at the ONS.

‘The Cornish were officially recognised as a national minority more than three years ago but so far there has been nothing tangible to accompany this declaration,’ said Councillor Cole. 

‘It is time that the Government backed up their fine words with action and we will continue to make the case for Cornwall at every opportunity.’