of the state as a whole is not usually in question; the challenge is to its territorial organisation. This is in contrast to ethnic nationalism (for example, that advocated for Wales), which suggests that the state is not legitimate because it contains different nations." Its platform is based on the creation of a devolved assembly for the region it defines as Wessex. The party defines the counties of Berkshire, Devon, Dorset, Gloucestershire, Hampshire, the Isle of Wight, Oxfordshire, Somerset, and Wiltshire as being part of Wessex. Whilst this roughly corresponds to the South West Region, it also includes the Western counties of the South East Region, and excludes Cornwall, which it describes as being "the last of the Celtic areas to be incorporated into Wessex", and retaining its own identity, as well as own regionalist party, Mebyon Kernow. The assembly has variously been described as having a rotating location in the style of the Anglo-Saxon Witenagemot and as being based in Winchester, which had been the capital of the ancient kingdom of Wessex. The assembly would take power from Parliament in Westminster rather than from local authorities. In light of European recognition of the Cornish people as a national minority, the party called for greater protection of local produce and what it described as the "Wessex dialect". The party believes that the Wessex region has a distinct cultural identity, which it seeks to promote. It defines this culture as including morris dancing, cider, and the works of various local writers. The party was described in The Guardian as having a "nostalgia for pre-industrial revolution England". In 2010, the party advocated a 100% tax rate on the top 10% of earners, with the revenue passed to parish councils. Electoral performance Westminster elections European Parliament elections References Sources External links Wessex Regionalists Party papers 1975–1996 University of Bristol Library Special Collections Political parties established in 1974 Locally based political parties in England Home rule in the United Kingdom Regionalist parties in the United Kingdom 1974 establishments in the United Kingdom Wessex Regionalism (politics) in the United Kingdom