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Penwith: GEORGE SELECTED TO RE-FIGHT PARLIAMENTARY SEAT

On the eve of the 10th anniversary celebration of the St Ives Liberal Democrats winning the Parliamentary seat after it had been held by the Conservatives for nearly 77 years, the Constituency Party has announced that they have re-selected the sitting MP, Andrew George, as the Prospective Parliamentary Candidate for the forthcoming General Election – whenever that may be called.


At his Selection meeting at the weekend in Penzance, Mr George told members that he considered it an “enormous privilege” to represent such a unique and exceptional constituency.

Mr George recalled his Maiden Speech in May 1997 (when he became the first person to speak Cornish in the Houses of Parliament) and set out his goals for Government “recognition of Cornwall’s special cultural, historic, linguistic and constitutional status”.

He also argued for Cornwall’s economic development and to establish a University College in Cornwall.

Since he has been elected, the Combined Universities in Cornwall has been established and Mr George predicted that Cornwall would have its own University within the next 10 years. He also reminded members that Cornwall had achieved Objective 1 status and he was determined that Cornwall should establish its own Economic Development Agency. He also pointed out that Cornwall had had its language officially recognised and Cornwall’s distinctiveness was now being used as a tool to market the place and for the betterment of the local economy.

In 1997, Mr George also called for, amongst other things, a “fair deal for Cornish residents” on housing and other matters. He reminded members that his campaign to remove the 50% council tax discount for second home buyers had been largely successful and that more resources were being made available for affordable housing as a result.

Mr George added, “If a ‘week is a long time in politics’ then 10 years is an eternity! Even though I am not an MP who supports either the present or the past Government, I hope that I have been able to show that I don’t have to be resigned to engaging in unproductive yah-boo politics. From campaigns to defend our local hospitals and health services, to those in desperate need of affordable housing the challenge has been immense, but some significant successes have been achieved.

“It is important not to end up cynical and unproductive and if I thought that I were then I would not want to carry on. It is a privilege representing such an exceptional part of the country and I hope that I can continue to demonstrate that local electors are right to have faith in the work I do on their behalf in Parliament”, said Mr George.