Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Perran Moon and Jeremy Wright(1 day, 20 hours ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Perran Moon (Camborne and Redruth) (Lab)
Sir Jeremy Wright (Kenilworth and Southam)
The Electoral Commission has made no formal assessment of this. It would be a matter for Parliament to introduce such legal protections. It is prescribed in law that poll cards and ballot papers must be provided in English or Welsh, but there are no other prescribed language requirements relating to election materials. The commission translates voter materials, including voter registration forms, into a range of languages, informed by census data and community insights on voter needs.
Perran Moon
Meur ras ha myttin da, Mr Speaker. Since January this year, Kernewek, the Cornish language, has enjoyed part III protection under the European charter for regional or minority languages, alongside Welsh and Scottish Gaelic. In the light of that recognition, what steps can the Electoral Commission take to review its policies and guidance to ensure that Cornish speakers are not treated less favourably in elections than speakers of other protected minority languages?
Sir Jeremy Wright
I apologise to the hon. Gentleman that I cannot respond to him in Cornish.
EU Trading Relationship
Debate between Perran Moon and Jeremy Wright(1 year, 4 months ago)
Westminster HallRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
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Perran Moon
That was a typically perceptive Cornish intervention from my hon. Friend.
This issue affects fishermen not just in my constituency, but elsewhere in Cornwall and across the UK. The Business and Trade Committee’s report on EU relations points out:
“The fruits of the sea around our borders are a part of our shared ecology, and…must be managed carefully to protect the livelihoods of future generations.”
Businesses and livelihoods in fishing communities must not be bargaining chips, as some media outlets are suggesting; they are invaluable elements of local economies that must be protected and strengthened. At the same time, we must make progress toward reducing trade barriers with our trading partners in the EU. The former is crucial to the latter, because the Government’s current and future negotiations have to bring the British people, including our fishing industry, with them. I hope that the Minister will confirm that the Government are working towards a fair deal for our fisheries that will secure their long-term stability.
This is a moment for our Government to provide leadership, which was so severely lacking in the last Government’s half-baked negotiations. Although, as we have heard, larger and higher profile sectors will form the basis of these delicate negotiations, we must not abandon the need to reassure our vital fishing communities and protect fishing stocks.
Sir Jeremy Wright (in the Chair)
I thank all Back-Bench colleagues for their co-operation, which is very much appreciated. We move on to the Front-Bench spokesmen, beginning with the Liberal Democrats.