Opinion of the Committee of the Regions on the Communication from the Commission to the Council, the European Parliament, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions on A New Framework Strategy for Multilingualism
Date: 2006-09-22
Institutions: European Committee of the Regions
Subjects: cultural promotion, foreign language, language teaching, multilingualism, public awareness campaign

C 229/34

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

22.9.2006

Opinion of the Committee of the Regions on the Communication from the Commission to the
the European Economic and Social Committee and the
Council,

the European Parliament,
Committee of the Regions on A New Framework Strategy for Multilingualism

(2006/C 229/05)

THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS,

Having regard to the Communication from the Commission to the Council, the European Parliament, the
European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions on A New Framework for
Multilingualism (COM(2005) 56 final);

Having regard to the decision of its President of 24 January 2006 to instruct its Commission for Culture
and Education to draw up an Opinion on this subject;

Having regard to the decision of the Commission of 30 September 2005 to consult it on this subject,
under the first paragraph of Article 265 of the Treaty establishing the European Community;

Having regard to the opinion on the Proposal for a decision of the European Parliament and of the
Council establishing the Culture 2007 programme (2007-2013) (COM(2004) 469 final), (CdR 259/2004
fin) (1);

Having regard to the opinion on the Communication on Promoting Language Learning and Linguistic Diver-
sity: An Action Plan 2004-2006 (CdR 248/2003 fin) (2);

Having regard to the opinion on The Promotion and Protection of Regional and Minority Languages (CdR
86/2001 fin) (3);

Having regard to its draft opinion of the Commission for Culture, Education and Research, (CdR 33/2006
rev. 2), adopted on 4 April 2006 (rapporteur: Mr Seamus Murray, Member of Meath County Council,
Member of the Mid-East Regional Authority (IE/UEN-EA));

adopted the following opinion at its 65th plenary session, held on 14/15 June 2006 (meeting of
14 June):

1. General Views

The Committee of the Regions

lingualism and considers that references to this role should be
more explicitly stated in the communication;

1.1 welcomes the new Framework Strategy as a positive
contribution to the promotion of linguistic diversity and as a
complement
to
improve communication between the European Commission
and its citizens;

to the Commission's

existing initiatives

supports the three main aims of the Commission to: (1)
1.2
encourage language learning and promote linguistic diversity in
society; (2) promote a healthy multicultural economy; and (3)
give citizens access to European Union legislation, procedures
and information in their own languages;

however, feels that for such an important set of objec-

1.3
tives the resources available are not sufficient;

accepts that

the responsibility for making further
1.4
progress with multilingualism mainly rests with Member States
and their local and regional authorities but considers that the
explicit support of the Commission is necessary to reinforce
awareness and to improve the consistency of action at the
different levels and across the EU;

highlights the important

1.5
role played by local and
regional authorities in implementing a policy to promote multi-

(1) OJ C 164, 5.7.2005, p. 65.
(2) OJ C 73, 23.3.2004, p. 33.
(3) OJ C 357, 14.12.2001, p. 33.

calls for greater recognition to be given to the role of
1.6
town-twinning initiatives in language learning and cultural
exchange and believes that such explicit
involvement of
people at local and regional
level can narrow the distance
between the EU and its citizens;

1.7
also believes that the recent amendment of Regulation
1/1958, under which Irish will be considered an official and
working language of the European Union from 1 January 2007
onwards, and the Council conclusions of 13 June 2005, which
permit administrative agreements between the institutions and
bodies of the European Union and the Member States which
allow for the official use of other languages that are recognised
by the Constitution of a Member State in all or part of the terri-
tory and the use of which as a national language is authorised
by law, are further important steps in closing the distance
between the EU and a large number of its citizens;

the

recognises

sectoral
1.8
programmes such as Socrates, Youth and Leonardo and the
integrated programme for Lifelong Learning in the promotion
of language learning in the European Union. These provide

contribution of

important

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Official Journal of the European Union

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good examples of actions that help to create a multilingual
society and the CoR reiterates its view that the Commission
can do more in this field;

1.15
agrees that higher education institutions could also
play a more active role in promoting multiculturalism in the
wider local community by establishing links with local and
regional authorities and local businesses;

1.9
In this connection, the Committee welcomes the fact
that in its current proposal on the Integrated Programme for
Lifelong Learning and Training, the European Commission has
not discriminated between the different European languages
and thus has not restricted inclusion in this programme to the
official and working languages of the European Union only, as
is the case now;

1.10
considers that the widest opportunities be made avail-
able for migrants to encourage the maintenance of their native
languages and the learning of the language or languages of the
host countries. The Committee considers that the rich cultural
and linguistic diversity that migrant groups bring to the Euro-
pean Union should be more explicitly recognised and that
provision should be made for the teaching of these languages
as a minimum requirement. The Committee also emphasises
the need for more specialised training for interpreters as a way
of
further facilitating communication between migrant and
host communities.

Specific Comments on the Framework Strategy

A c ti ons
L e ar ni ng and L i ng u i sti c Di v e r si ty i n Soci e ty

a M ulti li ng u a l S oci e ty — L an g u ag e

for

The Committee of the Regions

1.11
agrees that curricula and structures for the teaching of
a foreign language should reflect the changing demands that
pupils and students face; therefore,
looks forward to recom-
mendations from the Commission on how to bring language
teacher training and language-learning tools up to date;

1.12
supports the development of the academic field of
multilingualism and interculturalism in European society and
welcomes
research into
linguistic diversity could be accompanied by networks of
Chairs, along the lines of the successful Jean Monnet action;

the Commission's proposal

that

are

1.13
is aware of the advantages of early language learning,
and therefore
provided teachers
trained specifically
welcomes the Commission's forthcoming publication on a
study of best practice in early language learning which the
Committee considers should encompass a regional perspective
and hopes that this study will take into consideration the many
years of existing regional experience in this area;

1.16
agrees that the trend in non-English-speaking coun-
tries towards teaching through the medium of English, instead
of through the national or regional language, may have unfore-
seen consequences for the vitality of
those languages. The
Committee emphasises the urgency in addressing this issue and
welcomes the proposal to study the phenomenon in more
detail;

1.17
supports the idea of encouraging Member States to
establish national plans to give structure, coherence and direc-
tion to actions to promote multilingualism. The Committee
considers that these plans should establish clear objectives for
language teaching at the various stages of education and be
accompanied by a sustained effort to raise awareness of the
cultural importance of linguistic diversity. Local and regional
authorities should be involved in the development and imple-
mentation of these national plans;

believes that regional identity is strengthened by the
1.18
safeguarding and promotion of minority (lesser used) and
regional
languages. The Committee acknowledges existing
support for these languages but considers that because of their
minority and therefore more vulnerable position, special atten-
tion needs to be given to looking at further ways in which the
future of these languages can be secured;

supports the European Commission's inclusion of
1.19
‘communication in foreign languages’ among the key compe-
tencies that all European citizens need throughout their lives
and calls upon the Commission to draft the texts needed for its
implementation in society.

Ac ti ons for a M u lti li n g ual Ec onomy

The Committee of the Regions

shortages of

1.20
considers that improved language skills will enhance
the capacity for EU businesses to trade and welcomes the publi-
cation in 2006 of a study on the impact on the European
the
economy of
Committee is of the view that the publication should particu-
larly address the regional disparities in language skills and
considers that the recommendations should be made widely
available. The Committee also supports the forthcoming 2006
web-based publication of an inventory of language certification
systems;

skills. However,

language

1.14
emphasises that higher education institutions could be
encouraged to play a more active role in promoting multilingu-
alism amongst students and staff and would welcome more
projects along the lines of The European Network for the
promotion of Languages Among All Undergraduates (ENLU);

believes that, if the cross-border mobility of workers
1.21
is to be boosted as a means of
implementing Community
employment policy, greater integration between multilingu-
alism and vocational training is needed;

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Official Journal of the European Union

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1.22
highlights that in English-speaking countries of the EU
there has been a decline in the number of students studying
languages. One of reasons for this decline relates to English
native speakers' belief that knowledge of other languages is of
little benefit or professional use in the labour market, whereby
competence in a modern language is not always seen by
students as an essential skill for either entry to higher education
or into a career. Although the Commission addresses ways in
which it will create a multilingual economy, the Committee
reiterates that more needs to be done in building awareness of
the economic benefits of language learning;

1.23
emphasises the importance of being able to access
and use information in a number of languages and therefore
welcomes the creation of a single European Information Space
which can offer linguistically and culturally diverse content and
digital services;

1.24
sees the potential in sub-titles in film and television
programmes as a means of promoting language learning and
favours further study on the potential for its greater use;

1.29
reminds all European Institutions of the need, in its
policy for communicating with the public and especially in the
internet portal dedicated to European languages, to bear in
mind the existence in the Member States of European languages
different to those considered the official and working languages
of the EU institutions, and with a constitutionally recognised
official status. In these cases, the Committee believes that the
European Commission should add these languages to its policy
for communicating with the public;

1.30
considers that giving a greater role to translation field
offices in Member States in promoting multilingualism, particu-
larly through the customisation of the Commission's messages
for local target audiences as a positive initiative;

recognises the importance of stimulating an awareness
1.31
of the value of linguistic diversity and therefore supports the
organisation of high-level
seminars on multilingualism in
Member States, targeted at journalists and other opinion multi-
pliers;

1.25
considers that training programmes in higher educa-
tion and elsewhere need to be continuously updated and there-
fore considers the organisation of a conference on translator
training in universities in 2006 to be worthwhile;

1.32
considers the organisation of an international transla-
tion competition between schools in Member States to be a
positive and worthwhile initiative and would encourage the
development of similar multilingual benchmarking and compe-
tition for local and regional authorities across the EU;

1.26 welcomes the launch under i2010 of a flagship initia-
tive on digital libraries and supports initiatives to coordinate
work of European research teams in the fields of human
language technologies, machine translation and the creation of
language resources.

1.33 welcomes the Commission's proposal to set up a High
Level Group on Multilingualism and supports the holding of a
ministerial conference on multilingualism at which it considers
that the Committee should be invited to participate.

A c ti o ns
R e l a ti ons w i th Ci ti ze ns

fo r M u l ti l i ng u a l i sm i n t h e Commi ssi on's

2. The Committee of Regions' recommendations

The Committee of the Regions

The Committee of the Regions

the past

ten years,

acknowledges that over

the
1.27
Commission has developed several multilingual
initiatives to
help citizens understand how European legislation affects them
and welcomes the proposals to build on such initiatives.
However, the CoR deems it necessary that the Commission
intensifies its information and awareness-raising campaigns
informing EU citizens about its linguistic and cultural diversity
and its literary and artistic heritage as core set of shared values.
Awareness-raising initiatives are crucial
increasing the
public's knowledge about their heritage and it is particularly
important to target these at the younger generation of Euro-
pean citizens at all stages of formal and informal education;

for

favours

the Commission's continued fostering of
1.28
multilingualism on its Internet portal (Europa) and in its publi-
cations. The Committee welcomes the launch of a languages
portal on Europa providing information about multilingualism
in the EU and the accommodation of new portals dedicated to
language learners and language teachers. The Committee also
welcomes the setting up of an internal network by the
Commission to ensure that all departments apply its multilin-
gualism policy in a coherent way;

2.1
given their role in promoting culture and language in
their communities, the CoR recommends that references to
the part played by local and regional authorities should be
more explicitly stated;

2.2
calls for greater recognition to be given to the part
played by initiatives such as Euroregion activities and town-
twinning schemes in language learning and cultural exchange
at the local level;

recommends the Commission to further

2.3
reinforce
awareness of multilingualism and to improve the consistency
of action at different levels across the EU, utilising the inclusion
of
the ‘competence in foreign languages’ among the key
competencies that every European citizen should have;

2.4
calls on the Commission to increase its contribution of
sectoral programmes such as Socrates, Youth and Leonardo
and the integrated programme for Lifelong Learning in the
promotion of
language learning in the European Union
supporting in particular the student mobility promoted by the
Erasmus programme;

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Official Journal of the European Union

C 229/37

2.5
proposes that other European Institutions consider the
positive experience gained by the Committee of the Regions in
the use of co-official languages, with a view to adopting the
provisions in question;

2.6
recommends that initiatives promoting the learning,
study and perfecting of foreign language skills by employees be
aimed at local and regional authorities themselves, in relation
to the tasks that their staff carry out in promoting European
integration and in cooperation policies, and calls upon these
bodies to include linguistic competence in their educational
programmes and projects where this falls within their responsi-
bilities;

recommends

2.7
that more support be provided for
migrant groups not only to learn the language of their host
country but also to encourage the maintenance of
the
languages and cultures of these groups and calls for more
explicit references to policy measures in relation to migrant
languages, which could be implemented with the cooperation
of and between local authorities, universities and businesses;

emphasises the need for more specialised training for
further facilitating communication

2.8
interpreters as a way of
between migrant and host communities.

Specific Comments on the Framework Strategy

A c ti ons
L e ar ni ng and L i ng u i sti c Di v e r si ty i n Soci e ty

a M ulti li ng u a l S oci e ty — L an g u ag e

for

The Committee of Regions

2.9
recommends that language teacher training be made a
priority and calls on the Commission to outline more explicitly
its action plan for language teacher training at all levels;

2.10
recommends that the Commission specify the distri-
bution of Chairs in Multilingualism and Interculturalism across
the Member States;

2.11
calls on the Commission to promote more projects
which would encourage linkages between Higher Education
institutions and the wider community including local and
regional authorities and local businesses;

2.12
proposes that the Commission promote multilingu-
alism in higher education through projects along the lines of

Brussels, 14 June 2006

The European Network for the Promotion of Language Among All
Undergraduates (ENLU);

calls on Member States to act on the recommendation
2.13
of the Commission to adopt National Plans for multilingualism
and cultural diversity;

2.14
recommends that the Commission provide a clear set
of guidelines on how National Plans for multilingualism can be
adopted by Member States;

2.15
recommends that the role of regional and minority
languages in creating a multilingual Europe should be more
explicitly stated.

Ac ti ons for a M u lti li n g ual Ec onomy

recommends that the study of language shortages in
2.16
the EU should particularly address the regional disparities in
language skills and considers that recommendations emerging
from the study should be made widely available;

calls on the Commission to intensify its awareness-
2.17
building campaigns on the economic and cultural benefits of
language learning.

Ac ti ons
R e l a ti ons w i th Ci t i z e ns

for Mu lti li ng u ali sm i n th e Commi ssi on's

2.18
calls on the Commission to intensify its information
and awareness-raising campaigns, informing EU citizens about
its linguistic and cultural diversity, its literary and artistic heri-
tage and its core set of shared values and to place particular
emphasis on awareness-building amongst the younger genera-
tion of European citizens. It also recommends that EU citizens
taking up employment in other European countries should be
given more support
the host
in learning the language of
country, including language for professional purposes;

2.19
reiterates the importance of stimulating an awareness
of the value of linguistic diversity amongst opinion multipliers
and therefore calls on the Commission to further strengthen its
awareness
these
groups.

campaigns on multilingualism amongst

The President

of the Committee of the Regions

Michel DELEBARRE