Back to the future as plan for 'local' currency is mooted to 'save economy'
Volunteer groups and business leaders have backed calls for the creation of a Cornish currency to protect against the economic downturn and prevent money leaking out of the county.
The move would echo the printing of bank notes in mining areas during the 19th century and later in the 1970s by campaigners attempting to re-assert Cornwall as an independent region.
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Cornish flag
Ian Jones, chief executive of Volunteer Cornwall, said the county should follow the lead of pioneering schemes in Devon and Sussex by creating an alternative to the Pound.
He said council authorities should "plan for the kind of Cornwall we want for ourselves and our children".
"Communities create wealth but too often it is siphoned out – we have to keep wealth local," he added.
Ben Brangwyn, co-founder of Transition Town Totnes and part of the currency group which launched the Totnes Pound – in which Sterling is swapped for Totnes "notes" accepted by the town's traders – said Cornwall was in "dire financial straits".
He said the county suffered from a "leaky bucket economy", with large amounts of cash disappearing across the border.
"Local money is much more mindful when it circulates in the local economy – it is not a replacement for Sterling but can plug the gap," he added.
"It gives people more control over how services are procured, labour practices and the effect on carbon emissions."
Mr Brangwyn said Brixton in London, and the city of Bristol, were due to develop their alternative currency schemes further by introducing electronic transactions, a move his group hoped to follow. However, he warned that "key" to the development was the acceptance of a currency as payment for local taxes and energy bills, adding that inflation would depend on how the currency was backed.
Tim Jones, chairman of the Devon and Cornwall Business Council, said the currency was a fun "cultural idea", the kind of thing Cornwall does "brilliantly", adding: "It is a really interesting bit of innovation but would never work on anything but a local level."
"It plays really well to the tourist industry," he said.
Several Cornish mining areas in the 19th century set up their own banks and issued their own notes. In 1974 notes were issued by pressure group the Cornish Stannary Parliament partly "to raise money to aid it in the restitution of Cornwall's legal right to partially govern itself".
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by TheodoreV
Thursday, November 10 2011, 8:47PM
“Neurotic or Psychotic? The difference is that neurotics build castles in the sky. Psychotics live in them. Meanwhile fantasists find it impossible to differentiate.”
by Doitdreckley
Thursday, November 10 2011, 8:35PM
“Eondonellon, for the umpteenth time a Cornish pound would operate alongside a normal pound for certain goods and services. The 'real world' is falling apart so I would not put too much faith in that.”
by ABTruro
Thursday, November 10 2011, 9:13AM
“@eoindonnellon - As I keep repeating, this is not a new idea. It is currently happening in other areas (closest to us being Totnes). I am sure HMRC are well aware of the schemes and ensure that they still collect the taxes due.
Please understand that the purpose of this article was to generate debate around the future we want for Cornwall. Doing nothing is NOT an option. You have only to listen to the news this morning with the woes of Greece being overtaken by the woes of Italy to realise that something very big and very serious is happening to our traditional approach to economics. We HAVE to find a better way of doing things and one small part of that COULD be a local currency!”
by eoindonnellon
Wednesday, November 09 2011, 10:17PM
“So who will audit the trades and collect the taxes due on the trade? How will the VAT due be calculated for the goods and services offered.? Sounds like people setting themselves up for a wee interview with HM revenue.
Will your accountants and auditors accept payment in funny money? I'm sure we could all make money by running a black economy, but there's a wee matter of the real world intervening.”
by Doitdreckley
Wednesday, November 09 2011, 7:57PM
“Amongst the 'antis' Big Ger is the only one who gets this and the purpose of it. Ridicule (on the other hand) is usually the sign of ignorance.”
by Antbod
Wednesday, November 09 2011, 7:18PM
“Perhaps I should open an MK monopoly pound exchange, you give me real money and I will give you monopoly MK pounds, it does not surprise me the story is linked to the fantasy flag
Please seek independent financial advice before denoting to this scheme”
by ABTruro
Wednesday, November 09 2011, 7:16PM
“@ Big Ger - Exactly the point. When you spend money at Morrisons or Tesco, the profit goes out of county. When you spend it at a locally owned business, the profit stays in county. You could use it to buy your weekly shop - provided you are prepared to shop around (in the way supermarkets have discouraged us from doing). But I once again emphasize the point - we are talking about the changes we need to make for the world that is just around the corner. When driving to the out of town supermarket is no longer an option because fuel is too expensive. When eating foods that are out of season is no longer possible because they cost too much to import.
This may sound fanciful but there are people in this country NOW for whom this is the reality of daily life!
I looked at the list from the site you linked to. If Totnes can manage that, think what Cornwall could manage? And there is also a link on that page to businesses that offer discount for those using the local currency. THAT could be the start of a great campaign to get us all buying locally and supporting the Cornish economy?
We can land a man on the moon, split the atom and sequence the human genome. It is not beyond the wit and wisdom of Cornwall to make this work - other places do - but if it is not the right solution for Cornwall, we need to be debating what is and implementing it pretty quick or find ourselves going down with the ship!!!”
by Big_Ger
Wednesday, November 09 2011, 6:40PM
“Several problems emerge.
This "currency" would not be used for anything other than small goods and services, I cannot see Tescos or Morrison's taking it. It would not be used for large sales or payments, your local builder will not take Cornish groats in payment for re roofing your house. It will only be used, as it is in Totnes, amongst a small, possibly well meaning bunch of people as an insular way of forming a cooperative. You may be able to exchange twenty Cornish groats for a feng shui massage, or a box of home grown organic radishes, but it will not buy your weekly shopping.
See here for a list of participating Totnes businesses.
http://tinyurl.com/d8tqr2n
Now ask yourself, would that work for the whole of Cornwall county?
It may be a fun thing to do, but it will have no serious effect.”
by Big_Ger
Wednesday, November 09 2011, 6:40PM
“Several problems emerge.
This "currency" would not be used for anything other than small goods and services, I cannot see Tescos or Morrison's taking it. It would not be used for large sales or payments, your local builder will not take Cornish groats in payment for re roofing your house. It will only be used, as it is in Totnes, amongst a small, possibly well meaning bunch of people as an insular way of forming a cooperative. You may be able to exchange twenty Cornish groats for a feng shui massage, or a box of home grown organic radishes, but it will not buy your weekly shopping.
See here for a list of participating Totnes businesses.
http://tinyurl.com/d8tqr2n
Now ask yourself, would that work for the whole of Cornwall county?
It may be a fun thing to do, but it will have no serious effect.”
by TheodoreV
Wednesday, November 09 2011, 6:04PM
“Oh I've got an idea. Now it's protected by the EC, let's introduce the Cornish Pasty Standard (CPS) which is currently about 1.75 to the GBP. And whilst we're at it how about making little round things from gold, silver copper and tin all mined in the Duchy? We could call them "Quoins". A Central Bank of Cornwall and a Cornish Mint of course - not to be confused with Kendal Mint Cake. If no one outside the County recognises the currency in exchange for goods or services don't despair, there's always the Phoenicians.”