Is this article serious? For some reason I was laughing the whole way through it.

Cornwalls economy would no doubt collapse without English tourism.

If they want to ruin their economy and divide their own population, aka. Northern Ireland, go ahead...

The Bassets Pole Defense Force? The Hook Norton Libertarian Front?

I invision witch-hunt from the dark ages scenes; bearded men in wellies wielding pitch forks and torches.

I'm sorry but before today I have never heard of these people (no not oliver, I've heard enough of him) wanting to get 'other' people out of their Cornish tin mine land.

How can they not want the house prices to rise, then they can all sell up and move to places that have modern values, real drinking water, and toilets that flush into a managed sewer system instead of into the sea or a hole at the bottom of the garden.

Next they will be throwing wooden clogs at tourist because they make the price of a cream tea rise........

I go down their every year for my holidays and love the place and the local businesses are only too happy to take all my money off me, so I cant see how they don't want outsiders spending and opening new business to bring in even more outside money.

Now this had made me think of the place like in Hot Fuzz, something evil underneath lurks....Yarp!

maybe I missed the point, maybe I should now think of the place like iraq and book somewhere else this year......

when did a logical point ever come into the views of extreamists

the fact that freeing kernow from the english would destroy what little trade thay still have will never have entered there heads

Read the article again outloud with a really dopey south-west-country accent. And then be afraid, be very afraid.

I like the use of 'Padstein' though, quite good. He does have a lot of business there, and could have irritated any local businesses which might have previously managed to scrape by selling second rate greasy food. Can't get away with manky chips fried in weeks-old oil any more.

Did the cottage-burning in Wales stop people moving there? Or the house prices going up? No, not really.

Having just returned from a lovely family holiday in these parts I find this article rather shocking.

It is common knowledge as to where Stein's house is, at the mouth of a bay next to a lighthouse - and although such terrorist acts may help the lighthouse with its work - I don't think its going to much good for the CNLA long-term.

However, probing at the deeper meaning behind the article - as a country we need to look at how the cult of celebrity moving to such small economies adversely effects the indigenous population.

Ginsters is not a global conglomerate though Kernlow - please don't think they could support you by themselves.

No, i doubt if they're serious. But on the other hand, Cornish people can't afford to live in Cornwall anymore - all the houses are too pretty and are snapped up by merchant w^Hbankers as second or often third homes.

My own home village - in Wiltshire, not Cornwall - is now 90% owned by people who do not live there, and i'm not talking about rental properties either - those houses are empty all week. The owners bring food and other items with them from London (usually but not exclusively) and thus do not supplement the local economy.

My best friend, the farm worker, cannot afford to live anywhere near the farm anymore. He has to drive 20 miles every day from the nearest large town.

Something's badly wrong. So no, i doubt if this is serious. But it's certainly a symptom of something which is extremely serious.

Okay guys, sit down, this might come as a shocker...

We've invented this strange hot stuff (don't get to close) and you can use it to cook food so it tastes yummy and doesn't give you the sh*ts.

To make this hot stuff, which we have named "fire" (catchy eh?), you get two dry bits of wood and rub them together very fast.

We hear of magic sticks from far away lands that make "fire" when struck along a rough surface, but as yet we have not been able to obtain any.

Now here's the really cool bit... "Fire" will actually eat things to make the heat, so if you have something you don't like, you rub the sticks together near the offending item, and the "fire" will crawl over it and eat it.

Obviously the CNLA have waaaaay too much time on their hands. Why dont they spend their time trying to improve the lives of sick/elderly/vulnerable people within the Cornish area, instead of acting like a bunch of dicks.

And when they are found, they should all be hung for treason.......

I guess the clots are not just confined to the cream in Cornwall.

Considering that Mr Stein had the audacity to claim that local businesses should be grateful about the inconvenience he is putting them through while renovating the latest of his ventures (and causing massive disruption in the town in the process), I am not particularly surprised by some of the Cornish getting their backs up about celebrity chefs.

But I am a bit surprised by the viciousness and the threats of physical harm... Not nice.

"At a recent joint meeting, members (Bert) and financial supporters (Bert's 'wife') of the An Gof militant organisation (founded 1980 - when Bert & Irene got together - and reformed 2007 - when the sprog left home) and the Cornish Liberation Army (ol' Ernie and Edith) agreed to dissolve their respective organisations and to combine all resources (the change from behind Bert & Irene's couch cushions and ol' Ernie's Reliant Robin) and reform as the Cornish National Liberation Army (CNLA). Substantial funding (this week's benefit cheque) has been received to continue what have previously been low-key activities (grumbling about the lack of parking in Padstow) with donors from the other Celtic nations (ol' Ernie's cousin up in Skye) as well as the United States. (Bert's sprog - who's on holiday in Florida)

get rid of the townie bastards, they cock up everything, especially those city dwelling assholes who buy quaint second homes for the weekend who use them a handfull of times a year, and mean that people like myself can not afford to live in the area we grew up in and would like to remain

stick to the bloody suburbs, just because you have had a nice holiday there doesnt mean to say the welcome u will get if u move there will be friendly

after all what use are you once we got ur holiday money?

Yep, they exist; usually their militant activities are usually limited to writing letters to the editor of 'The Cornishman' and painting over English Heritage signs. Perhaps the pair of them have moved on to bigger targets and are now threatening fiery armageddon to over-priced fish and chip shops.

Having said which, Cornwall does have real economic problems - outside of Chelsea it is the area of the country needing the greatest multiple of annual income to get a mortgage, many villages are 75% holiday homes, water rates and council tax are ruinous, industry's in the crapper and no one can build new homes thanks to the entire place being divided between Prince Charles and the National Trust. The government couldn't care less since there are no Labour seats in the region, and the Conservatives were no better when they were in power.

The only thing that's been really helping Cornwall is Objective One funding from the EU which has been used to rebuild infrastructure; but that money is running out now.

"No, i doubt if they're serious. But on the other hand, Cornish people can't afford to live in Cornwall anymore"

Um... Just like the rest of the country?

Well, she was the one proclaiming Independence for Conrwall!

More seriously, Rich Bryant had a valid point and at the risk of coming over all Tubs, local homes should be for local people, not bankers wanting another trinket. What we really need is a good recession to flush these moneyed fools out into the open and see prices fall back to somewhere around normality.

Twelfty!.

Not dissimilar to my home village near Durham, which has bloated from a small, close-knit community to a faceless commuter town over the last twenty years. I couldn't afford to live there any more.

Even though i've already stated that i don't think this is serious, i've now read the other comments.

You nasty, narrow-minded stereotyping little bigots! God, i hope it IS serious and that all your houses are on their list!

Go on, make similar jokes about black people, if you have the balls.

In Holland, along the northern coastline to be specific, the local authorities levy an extra "poll tax" on houses near the beach that are not occupied by the owners all year. In this country people are officially registered at their address and cannot be registered simultaneously elsewhere.

The German owners of holiday bungalows always complain about this tax, only to be explained that it was the 'occupier' that introduced it during WWII to commandeer coastal properties for 'defense' purposes.

Ah, the engineer hoist by his own petard...

Try buying somewhere in London.

It is possible to understand why they don't want to be part of England, and that's because the only big city they can visit is Plymouth.

If my only experience of an English city was Plymouth I'd be pretty pro-Independence as well.

They clearly haven't noticed the (imperialist!) mole in their ranks... surely they should be called the KNLA (Kernow National Liberation Army)!?

If its empty for too long then you just squat in it. That brings its value down pretty quickly. Once its knackered torch the place and move on.

Black .. Black ... BLACK

Its about time these jumped up cooks were put in their place.

Personally I think theres no way that these type of restaurants, either Olivers ASBO laden '15' or Steins over priced fish bar, could survive if it relied on the locals.

The southwest has the largest gap between wages and house prices in the country!

Stein and Oliver need the London second and third homers to keep them in designer flats and patronising sea food programmes.

Cornwall has beautiful countryside, amazing beaches and a deep history, but all people from outside the South West know of Cornwall is that its where that fat tongued cockney t**t keeps his juvenile delinquents and where Stein likes to pretend to go fishing!

Get back to London and take your second homers with you, Cornwall doesn't need your false pretentious over priced menus.

People from the area can't afford to live near where they grew up. Like pretty much everywhere really. The solution - earn more ;-)

As for blaming the selfish outsiders who bought the houses - what about the former residents who "sold out" when they sold the houses. Should they have (a) taken the best price (b) sold to a "local" for less because that's all they can afford.

I know what I'd do.

"If my only experience of an English city was Plymouth I'd be pretty pro-Independence as well."

The Capital of Cornwall is Truro, a nice city with a beautiful cathedral, Plymouth is in Devon a different county.

Cornwall without toursim would actually get better btw, tourism is pretty much ruining Cornwall because that is how it is seen, as a place to go and get a tan during the summer months. You have people who own second homes here, or people who buy many homes to rent them out during the summer months to tourists.

The water rates in Cornwall, highest in the country and of course, tourists don't pay for them do they? The hundreds of thousands who come and use our state of the art water facilities, then expect locals to pay and then feel grateful that you pay people in other parts of the country to stay here.

So yep, we're so happy you come down here, that our water rates are the highest in the country, that you come litter our beautiful countryside, get drunk, make lewd suggestions at our local girls, clog up our roads, and then expect us to pay for it.

"a really dopey south-west-country accent"?!

Which one? Or are you too dopey to differentiate?

It's true to Cornish economy needs tourism. but the perspective of some of the obvious emmets is funny ... cream tea's and Ginsters (not Cornish) indeed. Not all Cornish folk work in tea shops/hotels and the benefit they get from tourism is truly minute.

splitters!

Forget these splitters, it's the National Cornish Liberation Army who are the true rebels. FIGHT THE POWER, BROTHERS (and sister - who may also be your brother. And mother. And uncle.).

Amusingly while hollands system sounds great, we actually do the opposite, if you don't live in a house all the time, you get money _off_ the council tax.

I'm sure they used to be known as the Cornwall Unified National Truro-based Seperatists. Maybe my mistake.

"Cornwall without toursim would actually get better btw, tourism is pretty much ruining Cornwall because that is how it is seen, as a place to go and get a tan during the summer months."

LMAO - you sound just like my mother. Cornwall is one of the poorest regions in the whole of Europe and you think depriving the area of its main source of income would actually help things? You clearly have no understanding of economics. I don't like the way the beaches are heaving and the roads are clogged during summer but it's the price to pay for living in such a magnificent area. That's not to say that things can't be done to improve the situation. Heavy levies should be placed on second home owners to counter the damage to the economy; other counties should be made to contribute to services like the RNLI, environmental control and water cleanup; congestion charges should be introduced for non-residents, etc. Simply hating outsiders and threatening their lives only highlights how backward some aspects of this county are.

I was born in Truro and now live in Falmouth and I am appalled by some of the local people around. Racism is quite high, apprecitation/understanding of politics is low, IQ levels are low in some aspects of the community, poverty is high, performance of schools is appalling and house prices bear no relation to local earnings. This isn't some perfect place being ruined by outsiders - a lot of the problems are our own doing. If people actually paid attention to local politics then they'd see how completely useless the local council is and could vote to change the situation. As it is people would rather moan about outisders and threaten violence than actually try to improve things. This article just highlights what a joke our separatist movement is... the joke is that we even have one. We cannot support ourselves as a region... heck, Scotland barely can! We don't have tin mining any more - we are desperately reliant upon government and European aid and the money brought in by tourists.

Having said that I can see the appeal of blowing up Rick Stein, regardless of patriotism - the irony of cooking him alive would not be missed. You've got to do something with your weekends and I can think of a lot worse ways to spend it.

"One of our activists was a member of the Free Wales Army who were responsible for the burning of English holiday homes in that Country" probably doesn't hold up to much scrutiny. Although joining the FWA was a pretty straightforward undertaking back in the day (are you one of us?), the holiday home burning campaign started a few years after the FWA fell apart.

(see Roy Clews' classic "To Dream of Freedom" for the whole Carry-On-Terrorising escapades of the pitch-fork wielding Evans the Freedom Fighter F.W.A. old devils.)

...why don't they all just move to Quebec, then? At least there's no tourism to be annoyed over!

Since when has there been an army and how the hell do I sign up? :D

""No, i doubt if they're serious. But on the other hand, Cornish people can't afford to live in Cornwall anymore"

Um... Just like the rest of the country?""

The main difference being that wages in Cornawll are far lower than the rest of England, but Cornish house prices are rising above the rest of England (London excluded).

If you think it is easy to survive living in Cornwall, go there and live for a few years, earning Cornish wages, paying Cornish water rates, and paying Cornish house prices. Add to that, you will be paying Cornish tourist rates for virtually everything all the year round, and many of the luxury items and some not so luxury) you can buy over the counter in other counties, will likely have to be ordered and delivered by post/carrier, making them more expensive.

Your attitude would be different, I can guarantee!

Pissed off with city types moving to your town, bumping up property prices, etc?

Do what I did and move from your scabby little area* and come to London and annoy the locals with your strange accents, customs, and ideas about women and peope who have kids out of wedlock [the shame! Stone them to death!]**

Hope that helps.

Steven R

* put Thrumster into Gmaps to see where I came from...

** although as with most vehement, short sighted, not smart enough to better themselves 'local town for local people' types, they probably have no problem with marrying in the family...certainly true of all the people where I'm from who moan about holiday home owners etc. Makes Norfolk look genetically diverse.

"LMAO - you sound just like my mother. Cornwall is one of the poorest regions in the whole of Europe and you think depriving the area of its main source of income would actually help things?"

Of course it would. Everything in Cornwall now has a tourist premium added on top of it.

115,000 people went to the isles in 2001, not bad for a place with only 2,000 or so inhabitants. That means Scilly has to have the infrastructure to cope with not the 2000 people who live there, but the 115,000 people that travel there every year.

Your council tax has to pay to empty the bins filled up with lolly pop sticks, and for the road workers to pick up empty pasty bags, to repair the roads which are overused (remember, no motorway in Cornwall, just the A30). Your water rates have to supply water to the tourists, flush their toilets.

And then we get onto the job front. You wanna IT job in Cornwall? Got your qualifications that'll earn you 45k in London? Good job, you might be able to get minimum wage in Cornwall, heck before minimum wage you would have got 80p an hour.

Then we can move on to the high unemployment which keeps the wages low, with so many people going for the same job the person advertising the job knows they can put minimum wage down and still get some numpty applying.

And shall we continue onto off season? Tourists all gone, so all the people who were employed to cover the tourist season now find themselves down the job centre waiting for next year so they can wait hand and foot on people who can afford to come here on holiday.

Without tourism Cornwall would be forced to get off its lazy backside and actually try to get an industry going, it wouldnt have the tourists to blame for its high house prices or high water rates. Instead people put up with it and that is why Cornwall will continue to recieve Objective One status from the EU, why minimum wage will be the common offer and why tourism is bad for Cornwall.

I always wondered who wrote "Camilla is a whore" in Cornish in Almyer Square (St. Austell). It gave everyone who understands our ancient language quite a chuckle!

"How can they not want the house prices to rise"

Because it's extremely inflationary. You can only want anything to become more expensive if you are selling it at a lower price than you bought either it or it's replacement and if that isn't the case then it is exremely uneconomical. Rising house prices do not create wealth.

Now that Scotland has it's own parliament and Wales at least has an assembly it's time for some federalisam in England and put an end to oppression from London and the South East! Centralisation has been consistent government policy since the mid 1970's

For the People's Republic of Mancunia!

Erm, this isn't the script for LOG i it? .... Royston Vasey by the Sea ...

An awful lot of Cornish people are racists who are indignant that so many "immigrants" come in to do agricultural and building work which they can't afford to do because they refuse to accept low wages and/or a lower standard of living. Without these immigrants and tourists there would be even fewer jobs / income for those employing them. Tourists do pay indirectly for their use of water and sewerage by paying inflated prices for accommodation. If people want second home owners to pay for their luxury they should vote for a political party that has the balls to tax them appropriately - yes, I know there isn't one. Oh, and by the way, when the arse fell out of the mining industry many Cornishmen became immigrants the world over. Stop whingeing Cornwall and get on with it. BTW I'm an "immigrant" from Devon living in Cornwall.

I know a little bit about extremism, having been up against some, both in the Army, and later, the Police. I note with interest the info about the "imported" arsonist from Wales. We sure had problems in Wales a while back, and at the time of the investiture of Prince Charles at Caernarvon,, MI5 ran an operation here. Recent evidence suggests that the KGB, and, in later years, the IRA, tried to capitalise on our problems. Let us hope the imported dork has the expertise of the two who scored an "own goal" when trying rto blow up Prince Charlie's train route. These people need watching. however, as outside acencies not best dispposed to us. (Can I call Britain us, or are we that far gone?) are all too quick to jump on the bandwagon. The IRA, in the early 60s supplied the Free Wales Army with some weapons, which, once the recipients realised how deep in the brown stuff they now were, dumped them in a reservoir. We then had a SERVING soldier,( a sergeant in the Royal Army Dental Corps no less1) whoi took it on himself to construct bombs for these people. He was caught along with his comrades. A lot of your contributors rightly point out how small the membership of this crowd of idiots is, but it doesn't take many to start trouble. And NO, we don't want our firebomb"expert" back. If he doesn't blow himself, and his team up, keep him!

I can't believe nobody has tried to blame this on Microsoft or Apple yet! Surely the residents of Cornwall simply need to switch to Firefox and all their problems will be solved?

..there are a disproportionate amount of Mac users down here in Cornwall. (Far too many Graphic Designers and Printers).

Obviously Bill is upset about it and wants to provoke a backlash.

Country boundarys have always been fluid, the old 18th century divisions of countries by the then powers are being recognised as the artificialities that all country boundaries are. On the one hand you have larger regional conglomerations such as the EU forming, on the other, existing distinctive groups want their own identity and their own lands, like the Basques, the Scots and the Cornish.

The other part of it is a problem the world over, rich people move in and buy up the quaint housing in cheap rural areas and the locals have to move out. Vast areas of the Australian coast are now wall-to-wall tourist towns, the only full time residents being cashed-up retirees.

"Of course it would. Everything in Cornwall now has a tourist premium added on top of it."

Great, so now all those unemployed people formerly employed by the tourism industry can afford the slightly cheaper prices... oh, wait, they haven't got any money.

"Without tourism Cornwall would be forced to get off its lazy backside and actually try to get an industry going"

So we'll get rid of all the jobs in catering, hospitality, entertainment, cleaning, etc and do what exactly? It's not like those Computeach qualifications can actually turn dustbin men into CEOs of multinational IT companies. Last time I checked you can't just make an economy out of nothing.

"Your council tax has to pay to empty the bins filled up with lolly pop sticks, and for the road workers to pick up empty pasty bags, to repair the roads which are overused (remember, no motorway in Cornwall, just the A30). Your water rates have to supply water to the tourists, flush their toilets."

Yes, because that obviously costs a lot more than the money tourism brings in. /End sarcasm

Whats wrong with the Cornish minority? Are they frightened that 'new blood' might dilute their stagnant gene pool and prevent them from inbreeding?

I'm not surprised they have someone from the faux Free Wales Army, both groups seem to have an IQ that verifies centuries of inbreeding.

Statements such as "English Out" are proudly used by both groups, but ask them this simple question: "OK, I'll get out of Wales/Cornwall, but can send all the Welsh/Cornish fsckers back?", they kinda go geo-stationary!!!

Scots, Welsh, Irish, Cornish - At this rate, how long before the Angles and the Saxons decide that they can't stand each other anymore, and want to split from the rest of England and from each other?

Soon, you'll need to get three different visas to travel all the way down to the neareat pub!

"The Hook Norton Libertarian Front?"

A tiny nation-state based around the Hook Norton brewery... not a bad idea all told ;-)

Anonymous poster wrote "other counties should be made to contribute to services like the RNLI"

Actually the RNLI is a national charity, and so Cornwall/Kernow is receiving funding from other places in the UK although, that said, there is still a very strong local element of funding. If people want to "do their bit" and assist the RNLI - which is very worthwhile - then see http://www.rnli.org.uk/how_to_support_us/individuals how to do this.

Poll/council tax - like other posters on this thread, I too think that's it's faintly ridiculous that we have a housing shortage and yet folk have holiday 2nd (and 3rd!) homes. Two solutions: (1) Apply a premium of at least 100% to non-residents, (although identifying same might be difficult); (2) again assuming you can identify holiday homers - charge them council tax based on their registered "home" address. So your "merchant bankers" from Chelsington would be well and truly stung!

Not that keen on le Oliver, and I really don't like RickenStein, but firebombing? Think that's a little extreme! Maybe there's some spaces in Camp X-ray for these wallies?

To be honest, I'd be a little upset if my only claim to fame was making pies and shagging sheep. Ah yes, and natural features which the populace had no involvement in shaping. They obviously have a deep-rooted complex self-hatred condition.

Still, I do see their point about Jamie 'blah blah blah' Olivier and Rick 'The Dick' Stein.

All Jamie seems to do is moan. If he spent less time at school moaning about the state of dinners and actually learning, then perhaps he'd be able to talk without defect. As it goes a bloke telling me how to cook a dinner but sounding like a clown is rubbish.

As for Rick, he likes cock (rel) for breakfast.

"One of our activists was a member of the Free Wales Army..."

"How MUCH do you hate the English?"

"A lot!"

"Okay, you're in!"

With apologies to Monty Python.

As I understand it, it's almost impossible to create "pastie bombs" with six fingers on each hand so they're both quite safe for now.

Are they sure it's the CNLA?

What about the People's Front of Cornwall?

(Or is that the Cornish People's Front!?)

Anyway, if they want to have a terrorist

sounding name for their club, they should

be treated like terrorist.

Some of the comments here about us Cornish are completely ridiculous.

The email was the view of an extreme fraction.

There are many things I hate about the whole tourist thing, but what they are suggesting is not what I want.

I want holiday home owners to pay 1 and a half times, maybe even 2 times the council tax.

I say holiday home owners, as a lot of second home owners are renting there properties to local people, I only have a problem with houses that are left empty for long periods. Why should they get a reduced rate?

I have a problem with the fact we pay higher water rates so the water company can keep the beaches clean for visitors, holiday homes should have a minimum water charge each month.

Maybe all holiday accommodation should have a standard charge of a pound or two a night which goes to pay for facilities they use. Would you mind paying an extra £7-£14 when you’re already paying £300+ for a week in a cottage, better yet, it should come out of that £300.

So you know, every year I go away with my girlfriend and so far we’ve only gone ‘up country’, I love the UK and there’s so much to see, that’s why I look at a map and know exactly where I’m going before I leave, if I’m not sure, I’ll stop off the road and check the map again.

That’s why I have problems with tourists driving around, they will drive at 20mph when they should be at 40 because they simply don’t know where there going, do some research or stop and ask, there’s a nice feeling about helping someone find there way, but there’s nothing more annoying than a driver in front of you slowing to a crawl at every sign or turn off.

Worst yet, where we’re lucky enough to rent a flat (can only afford it as we know the owner) is a stones throw from the beach right next to the beach is a big car park, but tourists don’t want to pay £1-£2 for the day, so they park on the very narrow roads all around the area which is a nightmare when you live there.

I love Cornwall, I love the UK.

I don’t mind tourists and I’ll always be polite, but I can’t stand the fact they don’t give a damn what they do while there here, just use your common sense.

As a side note, I can’t stand the kind of food they serve at restaurants like Rick steins, and I feel there over priced and pretentious, even if I could afford a meal there I would rather a nice pasty from chokes any day.

You can go on about the inefficiency of government all you like, but there are substantial economies of scale in service provision from having a large population. I'd be the first to admit that tourism can be a big problem, but the level of industry that Cornwall would need to support a modern physical and socio-economic infrastrcture independently of the rest of the UK would be much more destructive.

I am not from Cornwall and I find myself priced-out of my own community and helpless in the face of rapid development around me. This alienation exists all over the country now in one form or another. I have sympathy with the Cornish and I bet there are people in the same boat from all over the UK who will watch this story with interest.

"they should be treated like terrorist.". They'll fit in well then, considering we're all treated like terrorists in our beloved nation-state!

Aside from the obvious though, you're quite right in condemning these imbiciles and their 'firebomb' antics. As fun and easy as it is though, don't tar all the Cornish with the same brush. Sure, we tend to get antsy that we simply cannot afford to live there - I've had to move away, my job paid too little and my rent was too high :/ To put it in perspective, I'm now in Northants, get paid more than double for doing the same work, and my rent/bills/living costs are less by almost 1/3!

Kernow bys vyken! Oh and don't forget to check out Porthemmet (www.porthemmet.com) when you're next visiting - stunning spot!

clearly you have a shaped or entirely absent history of british imperialism (and the bloodshed it required)

"By Pete JamesPosted Wednesday 13th June 2007 15:38 GMT Well, she was the one proclaiming Independence for Conrwall!

More seriously, Rich Bryant had a valid point and at the risk of coming over all Tubs, local homes should be for local people!"

as with everything in life, moderate is the key.

the simple fact is, any extream is a bad thing, and its clear many posters here do not live on a council estate, and have no clue as to how hard things can get, UK poverty, you dont know the meaning of it.

try living in the EU largest council estate were they have already sold off just about every single main shopping center, and school grounds to be replaced by new houseing initatives, great you might think.....

however all these new homes now have new familys and need these non existant shops and schools to go to and work in..., catch 22 coused by the council for a quick one off profit that gets spent outside the area.

and the area is now very limited in its local shops and full of low income familys and £1 shops and virtually nothing else, not even an asda in the one remaining civic center anymore.

No jobs so reason for outside investments to bring in cash flow, no good shops so No reason for external shoppers to come here and spend their better but still limited cashflow as theres nothing werth buying here, and the list goes on, we would be very pleased to have several successful people come and invest their hard earned money in this out of the way area.

what area am i refering too?, some backwater no one in the UK has ever heard of you might think?......

NO, the area has 60.000+ council houses alone

(now transfered to a housing association with very little innovation in its mind)

and _MANCHESTER AIRPORT_ at its heart, wythenshawe (civic center)is its name....

and most of the UK's population has flown from/to there at some point as they go on holiday abroad so have actually seen it in passing.

the local Cornwall posters think your hard gone by, and under funded, try looking for the real problem and solving that in a moderate way for everyones benefit, at least you have your local Cornwall govt agency etc.

wythenshawe http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wythenshawe

"Wythenshawe is a district in the south of the City of Manchester, in North West England.

Wythenshawe, which has been referred to as the largest housing estate in Europe,[1] comprises nine areas; Baguley, Benchill, Peel Hall, Newall Green, Woodhouse Park, Moss Nook, Sharston, Northern Moor and Northenden."

doesnt even have a local council, its run from on high 10 miles up the road in central manchester and Paul Goggins MP http://www.theyworkforyou.com/mp/paul_goggins/wythenshawe_and_sale_east

Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Northern Ireland Office (since 8 May 2006)

is to involved in other matters to care to put things right, flatten civic and re-build the whole thing and give us a cinema (we dont have one anymore)at least LOL, so count your blessing and be happy you have masses of external income to supplyment your locals.....

you do have a cinema i assume? ;)

""Of course it would. Everything in Cornwall now has a tourist premium added on top of it."

Great, so now all those unemployed people formerly employed by the tourism industry can afford the slightly cheaper prices... oh, wait, they haven't got any money."

Except tourism is seasonal and prices don't adjust to be cheaper off season simply because the tourists are gone, the tourist premium is 365 days per year, so without the tourism premium people would have more money.

Yes tourism is the major employer, mind you the money from tourism goes to companies like Tescos, Boots, Woolworths, W H Smiths, Butlins you know, all the large companies who build their stores all over the place, which tourists are familiar with and use. As a local I do my best to support local business. If I need something from Jewsons, I'll check if the hardware store has it first. Halfords? Local car parts store first.

"So we'll get rid of all the jobs in catering, hospitality, entertainment, cleaning, etc and do what exactly?"

I dunno, maybe stop looking for handouts? If India and China can pull themselves out of the dark ages and turn it around, why cant Cornwall? Probably because of all the NIMBY idiots who use the excuse "but it will damage tourism if you do that!"

Cornwall needs regeneration, it needs to get people out of tourist jobs and into real work. Go to Redruth and have a look around, you'll see a big stone plaque dedicated to the guy who invented the safety fuse. Favourite son of Penzance? Humphry Davy, his student? Michael Faraday. Newlyn crafts, much sought after.

i live in the south-west and work in london - i wonder if theres a londoner out there gonna start an army coz this bumkin has 'thier' job. its all a load of bo11ox - we all live in England - if you havent got a enough money to live somewhere then get a better job or move somewhere you can afford. the prices are going up all over the country, especially coastal properties of which theres gonna be a lot in cornwall. its about time these moaners took on some responsibility and sort out there lives rather than blame everyone else. this moanin is a goddamn desease and need sorting pronto.

there - thats better

If they think they are the only ones with increasing houseprices and rich people taking over the nice bits then they are stupid (although i think their letter confirms their stupidity).

I'm a young professional with lots of student debt and normal debt - I can afford a mortgage but companies won't give me a mortgage because of the debt... so instead I spent £700+ a month on rent paying off somebody elses mortgage (who already owns a few other properties).

Where's the justice in that one then? Do I form a division for all stuggling ex-students and start bombing landlords and mortgage companies?? :) We are all affected by houseprices... the more they go up the less chance I have of buying one once I am able to get a mortgage.... Britain at it's best! (not just England you dumb Cornish rednecks).

Yorkshire for independence!!!

I'm from the south coast of Kent originally. This was a place where there was significant tourism years ago (I mean years!). Now that there are no tourists the whole coast is made up of retirement flats. There is nowhere for kids growing up to go without being told to bugger off for making noise etc.

As far as I can see, you have two choices, 1. Tourists, 2. OAPs and their chariots of death, I know which I'd prefer, you get peace from tourists every so often.

Anyone want to form the: Midlands National Liberation Army ?

If the cornish want to kill there economy then why should we stop them. You have to love the twisted and absurd opinions of some people.

Can't say i would agree purely with some of the methods, as more creative direct action gathering more people on board might have been better. However, it cornish cat has needed to flex its claws for a long time, and i hope, that with the merging of these two groups, imagination and sheer dare will take the imagination. Cornwall can take care of itself, without needing to be joined with england, it could through tourism (as long as money stayed in the country) easily look after itself, and provide jobs for local people rather than forcing them outof the area to find jobs abroad. You need a two prong attack, on the surface through mebyon kernow and through the shadows by way of the NCLA. I think surely the next target should be to get cornwall into the celtic league in rugby, then it the people can identify itself better as a nation. For those who are laughing at the prospect of a bunch of pasty eaters making threats around a beer table, then i wouldn't be so sure, any people will only take so much, we only have to look at South Africa and Ireland. The NCLA has now show it can match its words. As long as it keeps to a non-violent (no injury to life) and its actions are funny, humilating,and puts the fear into those who take liberties, then it will take the imagination.

Just dont go to Cornwall ever again, watch as the entire county slowly disappears up its "independant" a*se as the tourist pound drys up, property prices will plummet and we can then buy entire streets for £50 and not live in them. Get a job you work-shy twonks, then you will be able to buy a house instead of living off my tax. I was born and live in Manchester, its mega expensive but you dont hear me bleating about a Republic of Mancunia, in fact please do declare independance, print your own money and passports because you wont be getting back into my country without them. PS if you think that threatening violence is a good idea, send some of your "army" up to Gunchester and we'll show ya da hood, proper style.

Some people seem to miss the point about the housing problem in Cornwall. It isn't that it is expensive but that it is unattainable for your average Cornish because of the differential between income and cost – a bank will only lend you so much after all.

Tourism is shit! It is what you are forced to do for income when there is nothing else. Tourists do not care that the places they visit are someone else’s home, they just wasn’t as much as they can get for their money.

So what else could the Cornish do instead? They could follow the example of the Caribbean, Gibraltar, Ireland, etc. This would involve attaining some autonomy from the UK (colony status would do) and then provide a taxation structure that actively encourages financial institutions.

I recall back in the early '70's when I lived in Exeter, Devon there was consternation when pictures, purporting to be the Cornish nationalists (calling themselves "Mebyon Kernow" - "Free Cornwall"), training in paramilitary garb and rifles suddenly appeared. The security forces were quite concerned at the time - it was soon after the Provos started up in earnest. It transpired it was a rag week stunt by some students in Plymouth.

I was friendly with a chap in the Devon County Council planning department at the time and he told me that serious thought was being given to building a motorway so that the "emmits" (Cornish for tourist) and "grockles" (Devonese for emmits) could drive all the way to Lands End, see the sights there and then return home. The idea was that there would be no exits before Bristol!

All the police have to do is to type "Teamkernow" into google, and add "Jamie Oliver" or "The Eden Project" or "Rick Stien" and they'll find out who the perp is.

This idiot has made a career out of doing down anyone who makes a success in Cornwall.

Lets face it, everybody who lives in Cornwall knows that the Mebyon Kernow crowd are a bunch of no-hope-whinging-middle-class-liberals, and the Stannary Parliament was formed out of those Mebyon Kernow members who were to overtly barking mad to be involved in politics.

The whole "Cornish Nationalism" movement is made up of a bunch of ageing hippies, dole scroungers, Bodmin rejects, acid casualties and rum sodden ex fishermen, most of whom are one step outside to the loony bin, and virtually none of whom are actually Cornish.

Any movement whose proudest achievement's are vandalising a few English heritage signs, spraying graffiti in a made up language no one else understands, and cutting up an elderly Cornish woman's troop support flag, isn't exactly going to trouble special branch?

I've lived in the same county as these embarrassing oafs all my life, let's hope they don't embarrass Cornwall further.