MP wants Welsh text on ID cards

Logical

English and French are the official working languages of the UN. There, that's a reason (it doesn't need to be logical - this is government we're talking about).

"The Organization uses six official languages in its intergovernmental meetings and documents, Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish; the Secretariat uses two working languages, English and French. "

see http://www.un.org/Depts/DGACM/faq_languages.htm

Of course, if you want to delay the project, you should include both Welsh and Gaelic but get the respective Welsh and Scottish governments to pay for the incremental change. Or be inclusive and really blow the overall budget, support all languages which government offer to translate for immigrants while they are learning English (in order to become citizens).

Re: UK ID != Passport

Sorry folks, but the UK's ID card *will be* a de-facto passport. A simple reflection on the last decade or so will show you why. No longer living in Europe, I can look upon what is happening there with a mostly unbiased (and slightly jaundiced) eye and note the following:

1) You used to need a passport to go between countries in Europe. Most of the time, you didn't go through the whole visa-application bullshit; you just rocked up to the border, they checked your passport and then stamped the visa on it there and then.

2) With the advent of the European Union, there is now a "reciprocal" arrangement between most countries in the EU - you no longer need a visa to go between these countries. And since passports were mostly for holding visas (i.e., the official approval of your being allowed in the country), passports aren't technically required any more.

3) BUT (here we go) a lot of countries in the EU require you to have some sort of identification. I remember the jokes back in the 80s about the number of documents a French citizen *had* to carry at all time (the blue card, the red card, the green card;, the yellow card and the multi-coloured one where the details of all the other cards are duplicated ^_^)

4) Ergo, any UK card being introduced will become, in effect, a mini-passport; ID but without the visa component. And hence, since it will be used outside of the UK to show you are a UK citizen, there is French on the card.

Frankly, based on historical precedence, you folks in the UK are about to have a Salmon Day.

(Not that It's not just as bad here in Oz - the driver's licence has become a de-facto ID card, with a "special" 18+ card for those who do not want a driver's licence but still want to get into pubs and clubs. De-facto IDs all 'round!)

How far off the point can you get?

Surely we don't want ID cards? Who cares what language they are written in?

HAHA!

"so now we except ID cards..... "

YES! We do EXCEPT id cards. I certainly do take exception.

WTF? Why French???

This isn't a bottle of shower gel.

Neoc, #4 makes no sense. There are many countries and languages outside of Britain so why just France? It may be just across the water but no-one goes there. In that case they should put Spanish or Portuguese since that's where 80% of British people seem to go on Holiday.

Welsh isn't the only official language in the UK. If they INSIST on special treatment depite the fact they probably all speak English too then they need to add the Scots, Irish etc. But why bother? Oh, that reminds me, braille?? That is legit. If they dare put Urdu on it ...