A CORNWALL MP has called upon two parliamentary candidates to condemn an eco-protest that took place at Penryn Campus on the morning of Wednesday, October 11. 

Cherilyn Mackrory, MP for Truro and Falmouth, along with parliamentary candidate for Camborne and Redruth, Cllr Connor Donnithorne, singled out Labour Party parliamentary candidates Jayne Kirkham and Perran Moon for what she perceives as their failure to condemn the protest. 

At around 11am on Wednesday, October 11, a 22-year-old man used buckets of paint and spray cans to cover the walls of the University of Exeter’s Stella Turk building at Penryn. At the same time, on the opposite side of the road, a 28-year-old woman used a fire extinguisher to paint the Falmouth Link Building.

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In a statement sent to The Packet, Cherilyn Mackrory, MP for Truro and Falmouth, and Cllr Connor Donnithorne, Prospective MP for Camborne and Redruth, said: “Just Stop Oil are at it again, this time vandalising Falmouth Uni. Students should be able to study in peace without having to deal with these eco-zealots.

“We are calling on Jayne Kirkham and Perran Moon to condemn this, however, it is doubtful that they will as Labour continue to stand idly by and let this disruption occur. Their silence is totally damning.

“Until Sir Keir Starmer returns over million pounds received from Dale Vince, Just Stop Oils funder in chief, Labour will remain complicit in this madness.”

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In a joint statement response, Jayne Kirkham and Perran Moon said: "Whilst out-of-touch Cornish Conservative politicians release divisive ‘culture war’ statements about orange paint, Perran Moon (Camborne, Redruth & Hayle) and Jayne Kirkham (Truro & Falmouth) were at the Labour Party Conference setting out a serious plan for the long term renewal of the country, based on the transformation of the economy away from fossil fuels and into renewable energy, and rescuing public services from the dire state the Conservatives have put them in.

"Rather than focussing on culture wars and division, Cornish Conservative politicians should be focussed on weightier matters.

"For example, the fact that, after a decade of Conservative mismanagement of our NHS, the two largest acute hospitals used by people in Cornwall are, again, both on black alert and say they cannot take any more patients and guarantee their safety.

"Or the fact that after 13 years of Conservative cuts, our prisons are now full, so rapists and killers cannot be jailed.

"Cornish Conservatives could even condemn Liz Truss, whose budget they supported, resulting in Cornish homeowners paying hundreds of pounds more every month on their mortgages.

"The Conservatives still cling to power, even though they don’t behave like they’re in power. They ought to be focussing their time on fixing some of the local and national messes they have created, rather than stoking up division."

Perran Moon, Parliamentary Candidate for Camborne, Redruth & Hayle added: “Of course we don’t think people should be throwing orange paint at buildings. Under Keir Starmer, the Labour Party is a Party of service, not protest. If you want to stop oil, just vote Labour.”

Jayne Kirkham, Parliamentary Candidate for Truro & Falmouth added: “As the Conservatives row back on their climate commitments and Rishi Sunak travels the country in his private jet, Labour is focussed on tackling climate change and the huge benefits that action like investing in renewables and insulating homes could bring to Cornwall: well paid jobs and lower energy bills.”

Ms Mackrory, who will face off against Jayne Kirkham in the next general election, was one of 265 Conservative MPs who voted down an amendment to the Environment Bill aimed at stopping water companies from dumping raw sewage into the UK’s waterways and coastal waters in August 2022.

The amendment would have placed a legal duty on water companies in England and Wales to make improvements to their sewerage systems and demonstrate progressive reductions in the harm caused by discharges of untreated sewage.