County where PM put rocket booster under his ambition
THIS is where Boris Johnson’s journey to No10 began, on May 11, 2016, when he brandished a Cornish pasty on Truro’s Lemon Quay and boarded his Brexit bus, vowing to Take Back Control.
Now he is returning as Prime Minister for his proudest moment in the job when he hosts world leaders in the Tory-held county where he put rocket boosters under his ambition.
But not everyone in Cornwall will be happy to see him again.
Unemployed print worker Walid Mardei, 35, of St Blazey, near Par, said: “When Boris came here in 2016 I was there. I’m angry with him now, I don’t like politicians fighting all the time, I like them to be working together.”
But he was pleased global leaders will come to Cornwall – and hopes they will discuss immigration.
The dad of two, originally from Morocco, said: “I’m sure they will be talking about immigration, about leading the world. “What they say and decide matters to everyone in England and the world.”
Former horse logger Shaun Thomas, 45, of Chacewater, did not welcome the summit.
He said: “It shouldn’t be happening here – the amount of money and the environmental impact it will have is disgusting.
“It will bring people into Cornwall but is that the right thing today with Covid?”
Ex-labourer Ellis Green, 62, of Truro, said it would be a chance to show the world there is “more to Cornwall than quaint villages”. He added: “If it brings investment into the community it’s good.”
But Liz Steadman, 77, of Truro, feared an influx of officials, security and media during the pandemic. She said: “I just hope it’s safe and secure health-wise.”
Retired deputy headmistress Susanne Stewart, 73, also feared the summit becoming a superspreader event.
She said: “In one respect I’m quite pleased they’re coming because it puts Cornwall on the global map. But it’s the timing.”