Australian Prime Minister visits St Keverne Church and Three Tuns

Mr Morrison is a descendant of Cornishman William Roberts, who came from St Keverne and was transported to the Australia in the 18th century.

He took the opportunity while he was in Cornwall for the G7 Summit to visit the parish and lay flowers in the churchyard, with the bouquet provided by local florist Emma Hosking.

Mr Morrison wrote in the church's visitor book: "Thank you for your very kind welcome to St Keverne. It has been wonderful to to return 'home' in memory of William Roberts."

He then signed the book before printing 'Scott Morrison, MP, Prime Minister of Australia."

Mr Morrison added a postscript to say: "PS. Thank you Karen."

He was referring to Karen Richards, of St Keverne History Society, who gave him a tour of the church and its grounds.

Afterwards Mr Morrison enjoyed a pint of cold Korev at one of the village pubs, the Three Tuns, followed by a sandwich, while the Australian High Commissioner tucked in to one of the pub's Sunday roasts.

Mr Morrison took time to chat to the locals outside the pub before heading indoors.

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison chats with locals outside the Three Tuns in St Keverne. Picture: Alison Trelawny

The Three Tuns wasn't the only pub to the visited by Mr Morrison on his visit to Cornwall either. 

Whilst the G7 leaders were taking in the Eden Project with Her Majesty the Queen last Friday 11, the Australian Prime Minister and the Australian High Commissioner to the UK, George Brandis, stayed local and enjoyed dinner at The Old Quay House Inn, Hayle. 

Owners Trevor and Margaret Richards said: “It was an absolute privilege to welcome them all. 

"We were visited by the Metropolitan Police a couple of days prior to see if the premises were secure and suitable for their visit and were only told that ‘a country’ could be dining with us over the coming days, but we didn’t know who or when. 

"We were thrilled when we received a phone call on Friday afternoon confirming that the Australian Prime Minister would be dining that evening. 

"We fully expected him to dine in our private function suite, however he was adamant that he wanted to eat within our bar area, which we thought was down to earth and great for our other guests to experience.”

High Commissioner George Brandis, Margaret Richards, Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Trevor Richards

This isn’t Trevor and Margaret’s first experience of hosting VIP guests.  Throughout their hospitality careers, which has stretched over 50 years for Trevor, they have welcome the Queen, Duke of Edinburgh, Duke and Duchess of Cornwall, South Africa Ambassador Kent Durr, the Rolling Stones and the rock band Queen.

The University of Exeter has looked into the history of Mr Morrison's descendants, saying that although he is one amongst many Australian Prime Minsters of Cornish descent, the G7 being held in Cornwall had shone a spotlight on it.

Dr Jo Esra, an expert on Cornish history from the University of Exeter, said: "Morrison is descended from William Roberts, who was convicted of stealing 'five pound and half weight of yarn' from William Moffatt of Launceston, and was subsequently sentenced to transportation for seven years. Such harsh sentences were typical of the time, particularly for those of lower social status, which William most certainly was.

"He was part of the 'First Fleet', which consisted of 11 ships dispatched to New South Wales to establish a penal colony – the first European colony in Australia. After arriving initially in Botany Bay, the Fleet moved to Sydney Cove, and William's first Australian dwelling was a tent – in sharp contrast with the 19th century mansion, Kirribilli House, which is Scott Morrison's primary residence, it too being located in Sydney Cove.

"After his seven years were up, William married a fellow convict, Kezia Brown, who had arrived in the colony in 1790, a couple of years after William. She had also been sentenced to seven years transportation at Gloucester, also for theft, stealing garments belonging to her master. Having had two children before they were married, they went on to have eight more. Granted land after William's conviction was spent, they built up a successful farm, which stayed in the family for many generations.

"Of course, the Cornish diaspora in Australia is not just linked to transported convicts. From the mid-19th century, the decline in Cornish mining led to the mass emigration of hundreds of thousands of Cornish men and women by the turn of the century to places around the world, including New Zealand, Mexico, Brazil, the US, Canada, and Australia.

"Cornish miners settled in South Australia, taking with them key aspects of Cornish culture, including language and dialect, festivals and pastimes, traditional Cornish miner's cottages and engine houses; Methodism and Methodist chapels, songs – and importantly the Cornish pasty."