England, according to the BBC, is getting fed up with immigrants who do not bother learning English. They had a law that was to go into effect in 2011 that required any foreign person from outside Europe that married a UK citizen must now prove they could speak basic English before they receive a Visa to immigrate to the UK as a spouse. That was not the case before.
The new immigrant spouses will have to show they can speak English at the level of a 5-7 year old, and the effective date of the law is being moved forward to later this year instead of 2011.
The article quoted leaders as saying that they want to "raise the bar" for migrants...and that the English speaking requirement will "help promote integration,remove cultural barriers and protect public services."
Gee, what a good idea for the US. And maybe another one is to require anyone over 18 getting a driver's license, citizenship, a green card, employment, medical services, entry into the education system, a social security number or passport that they FIRST prove they speak and write English at the 12th grade level.
Additionally, local governments should restrict posting of any NON-English signs so that the same words must be twice as large in English.
See the entire BBC article HERE.And, in an interesting sidenote, the business for English classes is expanding greatly as described HERE, AND they mention that similar English speaking requirements have been set for student Visas. Thus a Pakistani speaking URDU and no English, cannot just go to the UK and enroll in classes, pay someone to take tests for them, and get a degree, or more importantly, a Visa that allows them entry into the UK. This means they have to prove they speak basic English before getting any Visa.
VJ
