WRITTEN QUESTION E-3800/02

by Bernard Poignant (PSE) to the Commission

(7 January 2003)

Subject: The increasingly common use of English as the only working language

The webpage on languages on the Commission's Europa website starts as follows: In a Europe which will always be multilingual, learning languages opens doors. For individuals, it can open the door to a better career, to the chance to live, study or work abroad, even to more enjoyable holidays. For companies, multilingual staff can open the door to European and global markets. But there is more than this. The language a person speaks is part of their identity and their culture. So learning languages means understanding other people and their way of thinking. It means opposing racism, xenophobia and intolerance.

Conversely, Article 5, paragraph 1 of the Multiannual Financing Agreement between the Commission and the candidate countries states: Any communication between the Commission and the candidate country related to this Agreement shall be in English.

Even though English is only one of three working languages, it is being used more and more. Is it true that English is becoming de facto, if not de jure, the only official language of the Commission?

Is it true that the Commission insists on the use of only one language in the above-mentioned Financing Agreement?

How does the Commission intend to uphold multilingualism in the daily work of the institutions?

Answer given by Mr Prodi on behalf of the Commission

(7 March 2003)

The offending provision merely reflects common practice during the accession negotiations. When the ten candidate countries join the European Union, each new Member State will use its own language to communicate with the Commission and the other Community institutions under

Regulation No 1/1958(1). Multiannual Financial Agreements between the Commission and the candidate countries are drawn up in the language of the beneficiary country and English, the English version being the authentic text. These agreements also provide for communication between the Commission and the beneficiary country relating to them to be in English. The negotiation of the agreements took place mainly in English but whenever the representatives of the country concerned so wished, in French and on occasion in German.

The Commission would like to emphasise that Article 28(f) of the Staff Regulations provides that, as a general condition of recruitment, a successful candidate must have a thorough knowledge of one of the languages of the Communities and a satisfactory knowledge of another language of the Communities to the extent necessary for the performance of his duties.

The Commission would like to draw the Honourable Member's attention to the fact that as part of its internal training policy, it took a decision in 1991 that a language profile should be drawn up for each new official or member of the temporary staff with a view to encouraging that person to perfect his knowledge of a second language or to acquire a third.

The Commission must also recall that it made an absolute priority of providing intensive language courses for officials in order to fill the gaps and complete the language training of officials who did not necessarily have the opportunity at the outset to learn the languages most frequently used for specific training courses (other than language courses). Trainers are now making a great effort to use not only the official language in which the specific training course is given but also the second language; better still, the trend is increasingly towards bilingual courses (for example, in the field of management) where it has been noted that trainers selected for their multi-cultural background are being employed more and more; a number of specific training courses are given in three languages.

(1) Council Regulation (EEC) No 1 determining the languages to be used by the European Economic Community, OJ B 17, 6.10.1958.