Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2006-11-14-Speech-2-431"
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"en.20061114.40.2-431"2
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"Mr President, leaving aside a number of proposed amendments, which I shall be voting against tomorrow, this report in its current form broadly enshrines appropriate principles, which have been acquired over the years, and in particular since 2000, which was named European Year of Languages.
Yet the application of some of these principles is dependent on what the subsidiarity rule will allow. Whilst it is true that everyone has the right to their mother tongue, it remains true that in practical terms applying this principle to the letter, over and above the official languages, would hamper the entire running of the Union's institutions. Moreover, we must prevent the use of what are referred to as minority languages for the purposes of nationalist extremism.
The issue of extending the European indicator of language competence is also addressed. In its current form, it is only for measuring competence in English, French, German, Spanish and Italian. This system must not mislead us into fostering the widespread learning only of these five languages. I say this not only on the grounds of the necessary balance and legitimacy but also because the projection of European languages outside Europe is a highly important factor in an era of globalisation, not to mention the historical, human and cultural dimensions of these languages.
The Portuguese language – and you will appreciate why I give this example – is, of all the EU languages, the third most widely spoken around the world behind English and Spanish, and ahead of German, French and Italian. Consequently, as in Written Statement 58, to which I was a signatory, I welcome the principle introduced in this report of ensuring that the European indicator of linguistic competence covers all of the Union's official languages, and, should it prove feasible, all the remaining languages spoken in Europe."@en1
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