LAST week, I wished everyone across South East Cornwall and beyond a Gool Peran Lowen - or a happy St Piran’s Day. It’s a day that means so much to us here in Cornwall, a moment when we come together to celebrate who we are, where we come from, and the heritage that binds us as a community.

The story of St Piran is one many of us grew up with. Cast out from Ireland for his Christian faith, tied to a millstone and sent out to sea, he survived against all odds. Carried across the Irish Sea, he landed on the sands of Perranporth.

We remember him not only for bringing Christianity to our part of the world but also as the patron saint of tin miners. He discovered how to smelt tin after seeing white metal flowing from the black rocks in his fire. If you draw this out as a cross, it marks the Cornish flag.

To this day, there are celebrations across Cornwall and internationally for St Piran’s Day. This year, it fell when Parliament was sitting, so I was up in London, proudly representing our area and heritage in Westminster. I joined Perran Moon MP’s debate in Parliament about St Piran’s Day, kicking off the celebrations by raising the need to ensure Cornwall’s mining and industrial history is supported to power our future.

On the day, it was so moving to see the Cornish flag being flown on the Parliamentary Estate. From this area, visitors from around the world could see the flag being flown proudly, from one of Earth’s most recognisable buildings. It really was a moment to remember.

The main celebration in Westminster was about bringing people from across Cornwall together. There were business leaders, community champions, and local people who celebrated our special part of the world. As part of the Cornish Labour MPs’ mission to raise the profile of Cornwall in Westminster, we proudly showed off our heritage and culture. It’s all about having champions within Parliament using every opportunity to fight for our local areas.

We’ve seen some good progress to support Cornwall, such as the importance of Kernewek, which has been fought for many years by many people across Cornwall. Last year I proposed my Cornish Language Bill, aimed at helping people who want to learn Kernewek to be able to do so. There was also the allocation of Part III Language Status to Kernewek, putting us on par with other languages in the United Kingdom. For our local economy, the Kernow Industrial Growth Fund is backing the industries where we have a real opportunity for growth.

For me, this St Piran’s Day was all about celebrating our culture and ensuring our area’s economic potential is seen by people outside of Cornwall. I also reflected on how far we have come in the last year, but I understand that we need to go further, faster and will continue to fight for our community wherever I go, whatever the occasion.