Plight of Bacup Coco-nutters is raised in Parliament (From Lancashire Telegraph)
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Plight of Bacup Coco-nutters is raised in Parliament
4:03pm Monday 10th September 2012 in News
THE plight of the Bacup Coco-nutters – faced with abandoning a century-old tradition because of red tape – has been raised in Parliament.
Rossendale MP Jake Berry has questioned why the Morris men’s annual procession through Bacup and Britannia should be met with road closure costs of around £1,000.
As revealed by the Lancashire Telegraph last week, Mr Berry said the Coco-nutters may have to scrap their Easter parade, amid concerns police would not man rolling roadblocks.
County highway officials have confirmed they are working with borough council events co-ordinators but there may be a cost attached to closure orders.
Mr Berry said in Parliament: “May we have a statement about the cost of road closure orders, as the Coco-nutters face the prospect of not being able to dance this Easter because it will cost £1,000 to close the road? It is endangering our morris dancing tradition.”
Andrew Lansley, the new Leader of the House of Commons, said he would ask officials from the Communities Department to respond to his concerns.
Comments(11)
happycyclist
says...
4:32pm Mon 10 Sep 12
wrinkles
says...
6:30pm Mon 10 Sep 12
BritainfortheBritish
says...
6:38pm Mon 10 Sep 12
her from here
says...
7:15pm Mon 10 Sep 12
One day a year it's not a lot to ask local council should fund this they would find the money if it was in Rawtenstall.
MerlinTheVoiceofReason2
says...
7:18pm Mon 10 Sep 12
BritainfortheBritish wrote:There's absolutely nothing un-PC about the Coconutters, as you well know. The blackening of faces is all about their mining origins - and that alone.
Is it actually the money or a police excuse rather than just say it is not p c "no pun intended " because they black their faces.
bluebouy
says...
8:59pm Mon 10 Sep 12
BritainfortheBritish
says...
8:45am Tue 11 Sep 12
MerlinTheVoiceofReasThe black and white minstrels were about music .
on2 wrote:
BritainfortheBritish wrote:There's absolutely nothing un-PC about the Coconutters, as you well know. The blackening of faces is all about their mining origins - and that alone.
Is it actually the money or a police excuse rather than just say it is not p c "no pun intended " because they black their faces.
Joeyseph
says...
6:51pm Tue 11 Sep 12
It's kind of hard to defend a group of people that dance around in blackface when combined with a name like that.
BritainfortheBritish
says...
6:56pm Tue 11 Sep 12
Joeyseph wrote:The thing is they should not need defending. It is only the ludicrous state of pc in todays Britain that would lead to this.
Just wondering, where did the name Coco-nutters come from?
It's kind of hard to defend a group of people that dance around in blackface when combined with a name like that.
EileenG
says...
9:58pm Tue 11 Sep 12
midas says...
4:31pm Mon 10 Sep 12
.
Mind you, given the salary and expenses, it would be a marvellous gesture if Jake Berry paid for the road closures.