independent Cornish news and comment

U-turn on Cornish Flag Ruling

A ruling that forbid the flying of St Piran's Cross has been seemingly overturned.
A ruling from the planning minister Keith Hill that stated that planning permission would be needed to fly the Cornish flag has been backtracked.
Local councils have been told they 'can turn a blind eye' to the flying of Cornish flags following an outcry when the ruling was recently aired during a Commons question time.
There has been several attempts in the past to rule that the Cornish flag could not be flown without special permission, each time the relevant authorities have climbed down.
Although the Government has climbed down over the flag issue, technically permission is still needed to fly any flag that is not a national flag; Str Piran's Cross is still not officially recognised as a national flag.
The minister also stated that Devon authorities can turn a blind eye to the flying of the 'Devon flag' - a flag loosely based on the Cornish flag that was invented last year with help from the BBC.
Cornish activists claim that the quick reversal on the flag issue was intended to stop a flood of Cornish flags being erected and forestall any action likely to open up the debate on Cornwall's constitutional position.