Full list of new cities created in UK for Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations

20 May 2022, 12:52

By Naomi Bartram

@naomibartram

Eight new cities across the UK will be created as part of the Queen's Platinum Jubilee this year.

The Cabinet Office has announced Milton Keynes is among the towns which have now been given city status.

It will join seven other places in the UK in celebration of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee.

Dunfermline in Scotland and Bangor in Northern Ireland have also won the honour.

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The new city list:

• Stanley, capital of the Falkland Islands
• Douglas, Isle of Man
• Bangor, Northern Ireland
• Colchester
• Doncaster
• Milton Keynes
• Dunfermline, Scotland
• Wrexham, Wales

Colchester is the second Essex town to become a city this year after Southend was given the status in October following the death of MP Sir David Amess.

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The cabinet has said the new cities can expect a boost to local communities and as well as opening up new opportunities for people who live there.

Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries described city status as 'a huge accolade' adding: "This competition showcases the best of Britain and the Overseas Territories and will act as a lasting legacy of Her Majesty The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee."

Steve Barclay, chancellor of the duchy of Lancaster added these are some of the places that "make Britain great".

He said: "What was clear to me during the process of assessing each application was the pride that people felt for their communities, local cultural heritage and the Royal Family.

"As we celebrate Her Majesty The Queen’s colossal contribution to society, I am thrilled that we are able to recognise some of the many places that make Britain great.

“It is also incredibly reflective of Her Majesty’s global outlook and years of international service that applicants from the Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies have been selected as winners for the first time."

The announcement brings the number of official cities in the mainland UK to 76, with 55 in England, eight in Scotland, seven in Wales and six in Northern Ireland.

The last competition to win civic honours ran ten years ago to mark the Queen's Diamond Jubilee.