Only one in 40 of British diplomats now speaks to the highest level the language of the country where they are posted. Some 1,690 staff, or 90% of Britain’s diplomatic service, have no recognised language abilities for the country to which they have been posted. Figures about language skills in the Foreign office were uncovered by Conservative MP Stephen Barclay, who sits on the UK’s public accounts select committee.
The Foreign Office language school was closed by Gordon Brown’s treasury to save £1m per year, and reopened last year by William Hague, the Foreign Secretary. However, there are concerns that Britain could be losing out on lucrative trade deals as a result. For example the recent bid to build 126 fighter jets in India, whose government this year declared France the preferred bidder over the UK in a £7bn deal… and where just one UK diplomat can speak Hindi.
A spokesman for the Foreign Office said: “the FCO recognises the importance of languages and has a workforce able to communicate and negotiate effectively throughout the world – from Latin America to the Far East. But we are committed to strengthening our diplomatic network further – including reviving core diplomatic skills such as language learning.”
Telegraph: Language skills are being lost in translation
Telegraph: One in 40 UK diplomats fluent in language of country in which they work
Independent (IE): The cost of scrapping foreign languages hits home