30th June 2007
Ben Bradshaw MP
House of Commons
Westminster
London
SW1A 0AA
Dear Mr Bradshaw
I understand that you have recently been appointed Minister for the ‘South West’.
Could you please enlighten me as to what geographical area the ‘South West’ alludes to, I am aware of the boundaries of the Historic Wessex and Cornwall (Kernow) are these the same as ‘The South West’, if they are not when and who designated the geographical area.
As there have been a number of Regional Ministers appointed, and that this appears to be a new constitutional development , can you advise me what your responsibilities are to the people of ‘The South-West’ are ? As a resident of North Somerset, I am assuming that I live in the South West.
I very much look forward to your reply.
Yours Sincerely
I will post the reply !
3 hours ago
1 comments:
here is a question for Ben Bradshaw:
This Ministry of Justice
3rd of August 2007
A REQUEST UNDER THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATIONS ACT FOR ALL INFORMATION HELD BY THE MINISTRY OF JUSTICE THAT RELATES TO THE CONSTITUTIONAL STATUS OF THE DUCHY OF CORNWALL AND ITS RELATIONSHIP TO THE TERRITORY OF CORNWALL, SEE FOLLOWING LETTER FOR MORE DETAILS.
Dear Sir/Madam
I am writing to ask for your aid and advice on understanding one of the constitutional issues within the UK. I am a Cornish UK citizen and my query relates to the relationship between the County of Cornwall and the Duchy of Cornwall. I believe it to be in the best interests of all residents of Cornwall including the Celtic Cornish ethnic minority to have a clear and complete description of the relationship between the Duchy and Cornwall. Obtaining this; however, has so far proved impossible. I have, in the past, contacted the Duchy of Cornwall, Cornwall County Council, the Department of Constitutional Affairs and other government offices, none of whom have been able or willing to provide a comprehensive answer that addresses all the facts.
If we look at the Duchy of Cornwall website we see the following claim:
“The Duchy of Cornwall is a well-managed private estate which funds the public, charitable and private activities of The Prince of Wales and his family. The Duchy consists of around 54,764 hectares of land in 22 counties, mostly in the South West of England”
No mention of a relationship with the county and territory of Cornwall here or anywhere else on the site. Yet if we check the government website for Bona Vacantia we find the following:
“If the company's last registered office and the asset was in the Duchies of Cornwall or Lancashire its assets fall to be dealt with by Messrs Farrer & Co, Solicitors, of 66 Lincolns Inn Fields, London WC2A 3LH. The Duchy of Cornwall comprises the County of Cornwall. The Duchy of Lancaster comprises the Counties of Lancashire, Merseyside and parts of Greater Manchester, Cheshire and Cumbria. Further details as to the precise boundaries of the Duchy can be obtained from the Duchy Office, 1 Lancaster Place, Strand, London WC2E 7ED (tel: 020 7836 8277).”
It seems no coherent description of the Duchy is available. In the book "The Cornish Question" by Mark Sandford that was published by the Constitutional Unit, School of Public Policy, University College London in 2002 it states that -
"The existence of the Duchy of Cornwall was once of constitutional significance, but is now essentially a commercial organisation"
Considering that this commercial organisation is the largest landowner in Cornwall and claims to be nothing but a private estate and company, you would think it reasonable to expect there to be an official date of change-over from an official body of constitutional significance into a purely private commercial organisation.
In the Cornwall Submarine Mines Act 1858 it states that the Duchy of Cornwall is a 'territorial possession' of Britain.
So, sometime between 1858 and the present day, a territory of Britain transformed into a private commercial organization, when, if at all, did this happen?
A court case in 1828, A trial at Bar (Rowe v. Brenton) it was affirmed that everything connected with the Duchy is "of public interest", and "all the Kingdom should take notice". Quite rightly so considering the Duchy of Cornwall is a territory of Britain. Yet when Cornish MP Andrew George raised questions on the 16th June 1997 about the affairs of the Duchy he was told that there is an injunction in the House of Commons that prevents such questions being raised, how can this be?
In The Annual Accounts of the Duchy of Cornwall 1998, it states that `-
"Accounts are prepared in accordance with instructions issued by H.M. Treasury. The Duchy's primary function is to provide an income for present and future Dukes of Cornwall. The Duke is only entitled to the net income"
This means the Treasury deals with the Duchy as if it were a government department. So how can the Duke of Cornwall be the owner of a private estate?
In the 19th century the legal arguments of Duchy officials, defeated the Crown's aspirations of sovereignty of the Cornish foreshore. The Duchy of Cornwall argued that the Duke has sovereignty of Cornwall and not the Crown.
On behalf of the Duchy in its successful action against the Crown, which resulted in the Cornwall Submarine Mines Act of 1858, Sir George Harrison (Attorney General for Cornwall) makes this submission.
That Cornwall, like Wales, was at the time of the Conquest, and was subsequently treated in many respects as distinct from England.
That it was held by the Earls of Cornwall with the rights and prerogative of a County Palatine, as far as regarded the Seignory or territorial dominion.
That the Dukes of Cornwall have from the creation of the Duchy enjoyed the rights and prerogatives of a County Palatine, as far as regarded seignory or territorial dominion, and that to a great extent by Earls.
That when the Earldom was augmented into a Duchy, the circumstances attending to it's creation, as well as the language of the Duchy Charter, not only support and confirm natural presumption, that the new and higher title was to be accompanied with at least as great dignity, power, and prerogative as the Earls enjoyed, but also afforded evidence that the Duchy was to be invested with still more extensive rights and privileges.
The Duchy Charters have always been construed and treated, not merely by the Courts of Judicature, but also by the Legislature of the Country, as having vested in the Dukes of Cornwall the whole territorial interest and dominion of the Crown in and over the entire County of Cornwall.
This would suggest that Cornwall (the county) is a Duchy.
In my opinion these are questions that should be deemed important enough to be answered by someone in authority, whether that authority is a Government office, Cornwall County Council or Duchy of Cornwall office, after all, claiming a national territory and making it your own private business is no small affair - on a par with opening the newspaper this morning to find out that Richard Branson suddenly owns Gibraltar as a private business concern - and then reading that it was once a UK protectorate but now it belongs to Virgin - as the only official explanation for the change over. The exact relationship of the Duchy to the territory of Cornwall and the influence the Duchy has within Cornwall are matters of clear public interest, please help in getting to the bottom of this constitutional puzzle.
Please do not hesitate to contact me if you need any further information and I look forward to your response.
Yours faithfully
Philip R Hosking
CC to the Duchy of Cornwall, The Department of Constitutional Affairs, Government Office of the South West, Cornwall County Council, Council of Europe, European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights
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