§ Miss McIntoshTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will make a statement on the proportion of people in England who speak a second language; and what recent research she has commissioned on comparisons with other EU states. [43806]
§ Margaret HodgeAs part of its support for the European Year of Languages, the European Commission carried out a survey of the languages spoken in the 15 member states of the European Union in April 2001. The survey, "Eurobarometer 54", indicated that 34 per cent. of the UK sample is able to speak another EU language.
Our long-term language strategy, which we plan to publish in the autumn, will outline our proposals to widen the opportunities for language learning in this country. In particular, it is our ambition that all primary school children will be entitled to study languages by 2012.