Fifth nation

During the present crisis, sight has been lost of Cornwall as the fifth nation of the UK. The expression “the nations in the UK which have devolution of public health” has been reduced, incorrectly, to “the four devolved nations” or even “the four nations of the UK”. Cornwall has a small measure of devolution, but not nearly so much as the other Celtic nations of the UK. I draw attention to two areas in which Cornwall should have devolved powers. It should have devolved powers over public health. At present, Cornwall is treated as if it were part of England as regards public health. Yesterday’s Cornish Times reported that Public Health England was trying to prevent Cornwall from publishing the full figures for coronavirus. This is a disgrace. The second important area where Cornwall needs devolved powers is housing. It is appalling that the number of houses to be built in Cornwall is dictated from outside the Duchy.