September 7th, 2027
In little over a week the Wizarding Community of Great Britain and Northern Ireland has found itself in significant turmoil following the vote for the Goblin’s Retreat from the British Wizarding Community (more colloquially known as “Gretreat”) passing by a narrow 60%.
Months of impassioned campaigning, days of debates in the Wizengamot Chambers, and it came down to mere hours for the vote to pass with the viewing gallery erupting into chaos as the passing vote was announced. It took minutes for accusations of a rigged vote to fly from the lips of none other than the Headmaster of Durmstrang Institute for Magical Learning, Matvey Golovin. In his next breath he declared his school will withdraw from the Triwizard Tournament, a magically binding contract, due to commence this October at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. In recent years Durmstrang Institute has become exceptionally supportive of the goblin community, even moving to accept goblins alongside muggleborn and halfblood students.
Following the explosive ending of the Wizengamot vote many questions have remained unanswered. Lark Rosewood, Head of the Department of Games and Sports, was quick to dispel rumours, telling Ms Foxclaw, of The Daily Prophet;
“There’s been some tension with Headmaster Golovin regarding the vote, sure, but these [things are] bound by signed contracts. A good deal of money’s already been put into this competition and the preparations, I assure [you], we’ll be going forward.”
Reassuringly the Ministry of Magic has plans in place if Headmaster Golovin does continue in his efforts to break from tradition – though Ms Rosewood is adamant the event will continue in its traditional format.
When pressed with the suggestion that the Goblin’s funding of The Triwizard Tournament was a manipulative tactic to help sway the public to the ‘Gretreat’ side Ms. Rosewood dismissed the idea as nonsense, assuring that The Department of Magical Games and Sports had adequate funding for yearly major events – including the Tournament and The Quidditch World Cup last year – and even has a goblin member of staff in the department.
Beyond the Triwizard Tournament, the Wizarding public of Great Britain and Northern Ireland have felt the pinch with inflation skyrocketing due to the uncertainty following the ‘Gretreat’ vote. There have been reports of a mass exodus of wizarding money from Gringotts Bank with the doors closing early to prevent the economy destabilising further. Inflation currently sits at 200% with many touting that it looks to raise further, causing a massive damaging effect to local shops and businesses.
Dermot Trickelbank, Head of the Department of Magical Resources and Revenue, gave this statement to The Daily Prophet;
The “Gretreat” vote has caused a fair bit of economic turmoil, as we had anticipated. Uncertainty around the issue including Gringotts’ position within the Wizarding world has led to some initial fears resulting in marketplace prices inflating by as much as 200% as we saw last Monday. Despite this, I urge everyone to see logic. Obviously we are still going to have an economy and things will likely work themselves out within a month’s time or so. If you were planning on divesting now, you will likely regret it by the end of the year when the dust has settled.
In the coming weeks the negotiations for the Goblin’s Retreat from the British Wizarding Community will commence in what is expected to be a very heated and divisive showdown between the Ministry of Magic and the Goblin community. Supposedly hot on the agenda will be Gringotts Wizarding Bank being returned to goblin hands, and if Goblinkind will be allowed wands, and entry to Hogwarts.
Official Statement from the Ministry of Magic
Office of The Minister for Magic
The Ministry of Magic announces that the official beginning of the Goblin retreat has been voted on and approved by the Wizengamot and hereby declared official by The Minister for Magic Alyssa Merriweather with her signature.
I ask that during this time of upheaval and change within our community, people see reason and understand a different perspective should they not agree on the decision.
The Ministry of Magic and myself wish all the best to the Goblin community. The public will be notified and updated when a deal has been made. I ask that you further trust us, as your Ministry of Magic to see this through within our best interest.
Regards,
Minister Merriweather.
