MILLENNIUM CITY STATUS COMPETITION - WINNING CITIES ANNOUNCED
18 Dec 2000 12:00 AM
Three new cities for the Millennium were announced today by the Home
Office on behalf of Her Majesty the Queen.
In a Parliamentary Written Answer, Home Office Minister Mike O''Brien
announced that, on the advice of the Prime Minister, Her Majesty The
Queen has granted city status to Brighton & Hove, Inverness and
Wolverhampton to commemorate the Millennium.
Responding to a Parliamentary Question from Maria Eagle, MP for
Liverpool, Garston, Mr O''Brien said:
''I am pleased to announce that, on the advice of my Rt Hon Friend the
Prime Minister, Her Majesty The Queen has commanded that city status
should be granted to Brighton & Hove, Inverness and Wolverhampton to
mark the Millennium.
''Although the grant of the honour remains a rare mark of distinction,
The Queen accepted the Prime Minister''s recommendation to grant city
status to more than one town to commemorate the Millennium. City
status will be granted by Letters Patent, which will now be prepared
for presentation to Brighton & Hove, Inverness and Wolverhampton in
due course.
''The unsuccessful applicants will, of course, be disappointed not to
have been honoured on this occasion. The quality of the thirty-nine
applications received was very high, however, and demonstrated the
pride in their communities felt by local people in towns across the
United Kingdom. They will all have an opportunity for their
applications to be considered again, for the grant of city status to
mark Her Majesty''s Golden Jubilee in 2002. The Queen has agreed to
the Prime Minister''s recommendation that Her Jubilee should be
marked, exceptionally, by grants of city status to a suitably
qualified town in each of Wales, Northern Ireland, England and
Scotland.
''My officials will now initiate a review of the procedures used in
the Millennium competition. Further details of the Golden Jubilee
competition will be announced during the first half of next year.''
NOTES FOR EDITORS
1. City status is a rare mark of distinction granted by the Sovereign
and conferred by Letters Patent. It is granted by personal Command of
the Queen, on the advice of Her Ministers.
2. The grant of city status is purely honorific; it confers no
additional powers or functions on the town.
3. City status is not, and never has been, a right which can be
claimed by a town fulfilling certain conditions. The use of specific
criteria could lead to a town claiming city status as of right, which
in turn might devalue the honour. The reasons for a decision to
grant city status to a particular town are not divulged publicly, but
the factors usually taken into account include population size,
whether a town has significant Royal and historical links and its
significance and distinctiveness as a centre within its own area. All
applications were considered on their individual merits.
4. Applications were formally invited on 28 May 1999 with a deadline
of 1 September 1999. Applications are submitted by local authorities
and take whatever form the local authority think best presents the
town''s case.
5. Thirty nine applications were received from 27 English, 6 Welsh, 4
Scottish and 2 Northern Irish towns.
6. Following the millennium city status competition, there are now 61
cities in the UK; 49 in England, 4 in Wales, 5 in Scotland and 3 in
Northern Ireland.
CITY STATUS FACTSHEET
1. Grant of City Status
City status is a rare mark of distinction granted by the Sovereign
and conferred by Letters Patent. It is granted by personal Command of
the Queen, on the advice of Her Ministers.
2. Additional Functions/Powers Conferred by City Status
The grant of city status is purely honorific; it confers no
additional powers or functions on the town.
3. Criteria
City status is not, and never has been, a right which can be claimed
by a town fulfilling certain conditions. The use of specific criteria
could lead to a town claiming city status as of right, which in turn
might devalue the honour. All applications were considered on their
individual merits.
4. Awards Since 1900:
2000: Brighton & Hove
Inverness
Wolverhampton
1994: Armagh
St David''s
1992: Sunderland (40th Anniversary of Queen''s Accession to
the throne)
1977: Derby (Queen''s Silver Jubilee)
1969: Swansea (Investiture of HRH The Prince of Wales)
1964: Southampton
1951: Cambridge
1937: Lancaster
1928: Plymouth
1926: Portsmouth
Salford
1925: Stoke-on-Trent
1919: Leicester
1905: Cardiff
5. UK Cities
Following the millennium city status competition, there are now 61
cities in the UK; 49 in England, 4 in Wales, 5 in Scotland and 3 in
Northern Ireland.
English Cities
Bath, Birmingham, Bradford, Brighton & Hove, Bristol, Carlisle,
Cambridge, Canterbury, Chester, Chichester, Coventry, Derby, Durham,
Ely, Exeter, Gloucester, Hereford, Kingston-upon-Hull, Lancaster,
Leeds, Leicester, Litchfield, Lincoln, Liverpool, London, Manchester,
Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Norwich, Nottingham, Oxford, Peterborough,
Plymouth, Portsmouth, Ripon, Salford, Salisbury, Sheffield,
Southampton, St Albans, Stoke-on-Trent, Sunderland, Truro, Wakefield,
Wells, Westminster, Winchester, Wolverhampton, Worcester and York
Welsh Cities
Bangor, Cardiff, St David''s and Swansea
Scottish Cities
Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Inverness.
Northern Irish Cities
Armagh, Belfast and Londonderry.
6. Announcement of Millennium City Status Competition
On 27 October 1998 the Home Secretary announced, in answer to a
Parliamentary Question from Jenny Jones MP, that the Queen had
expressed the intention of marking both the Millennium and the 50th
Anniversary of Her Accession to the throne by grants of city status.
7. Applications for Millennium City Status Competition
Applications were formally invited on 28 May 1999 with a deadline of
1 September 1999. Applications are submitted by local authorities and
take whatever form the local authority thinks best presents the
town''s case.
Thirty nine applications were received from 27 English, 6 Welsh, 4
Scottish and 2 Northern Irish towns.
English Applicants
Blackburn, Blackpool, Bolton, Brighton & Hove, Chelmsford,
Colchester, Croydon, Doncaster, Dover, Guildford, Ipswich, Luton,
Maidstone, Medway, Middlesbrough, Milton Keynes, Northampton,
Preston, Reading, Shrewsbury & Atcham, Southend on Sea, Southwark,
Stockport, Swindon, Telford, Warrington and Wolverhampton
Welsh Applicants
Aberystwyth, Machynlleth, Newport, Newtown, St Asaph and Wrexham
Scottish Applicants
Ayr, Inverness, Paisley and Stirling
Northern Irish Applicants
Ballymena and Lisburn