In all the hullabaloo over the announcement of the General Election on July 4, the fact Mebyon Kernow has decided not to field any candidates at all appears to have been overlooked.

There have been no press releases and no fanfare, only a post on its Facebook page at the end of last month, when the Party for Cornwall said it was focussing on the 2025 local elections where it could really make a difference for the Duchy instead.

Mebyon Kernow’s National Executive Committee (comprising the party’s leadership team, councillors and other prominent members) met on May 24 to consider the General Election, which will be taking place on July 4.

According to the statement during the meeting it was formally confirmed that it will not be putting forward candidates for the 2024 General Election.

It said party members have discussed participation in Westminster elections on a number of occasions during the last couple of years.

They had repeatedly made it clear that MK’s electoral priorities are the upcoming Cornwall Council elections and associated town and parish council polls, due on May 1, 2025.

“Our activists who campaigned in recent General Election campaigns know how difficult it is for non-Westminster political parties to secure access to fair levels of televisual and other coverage during the campaign,” they said in the statement.

“It has therefore taken the conscious decision to focus MK’s resources onto the 2025 local elections, where we expect to make significant progress, rather than the General Election.

“We acknowledge that there will be some people who will be disappointed that they will be unable to vote MK on 4th July, but we have concluded that this will be the best approach to helping us make progress with our campaigns for Cornwall.

“MK members are working hard building the pressure for meaningful devolution for Cornwall and fair funding for our public services, while challenging politicians of all shades to commit to meeting the Government’s “national minority” obligation to treat Cornwall the same as the other Celtic nations of the UK.

“During this election, we will be lobbying candidates on their commitments to Cornwall, in advance of the representations that we will be making to the next Government.”