Bbc News Today

[tamaris]

BBC news today five English councils told to adopt integration plans. When I lived in Spain I started learning the language a year before I went there. I think this money would be better served on the NHS. Just saying.

[emmie]

no problem. ^^

[Gromit]

Immigration to these shores isn’t new, and neither is segregation and isolation. There are Jewish communities, Catholic communities, Irish communities, Chinese communities etc. Their parial integration has taken many many decades, but things like St. Particks Day, and the Chinese New Year celebrations are enjoyed by everyone.

Part of the problem with our Asian communities is the WE feel left out. There isn’t much communal activity that we (if we want to) can join in with. They seem to prefer it that way. Eid and Diwali have really caught on with us. Perhaps it just needs a long time

[Peter Pedant]

used to be to allow/encourage cultural diversity

Poles always use polish at home -
and so they supplied interpreters in the NHS and didnt enforce English ...... and then

it was found to be a method of cultural domination ( oops!) - if a girl only knows Benglai then she is dependent on - - - MEN!

Some dimwit on the media ( or here) said there is nothing wrong with a child translating in a health context for a mother - and I told them what it is like taking a gynae history from an eight yr old boy .....

Dutch too ( free dutch lessons if you work there )
and sweden too

[Gromit]

*haven’t* really caught on with us.

[emmie]

the Asian community per se has been here long enough, yet many still won't, don't speak the language or integrate.

[Peter Pedant]

// I disagree. London has always been diverse//

1980 - I met a Turk ( aged 55) who had been here for thrity years and never felt the need to learn English !
( Lords Lane London, you can kinda do dat)

Thai girl ( here) whose grandfather ( bangkok) only spoke Mandarin, and so one of the house servants had to be able to speak Mandarin .....

jsut saying

[naomi24]

PP, but meeting the Turk and the girl and having that sort of conversation with them meant that they were clearly making attempts to integrate. Just saying.

[Gromit]

// the Asian community per se has been here long enough, yet many still won't, don't speak the language or integrate. //

I can only go off my community, but they DO speak English. They are second and third generation and were scholled here. It is NOT language which is the barrier here.

[Gromit]

*schooled* here.

[naomi24]

Gromit, I think the language issue is more a problem with the women simply because they don't go out to work and rarely, if ever, meet anyone outside of their own community.

[ummmm]

I was going to say the same as Naomi.

[-Talbot-]

When the Western man treats a woman anything other than his equal it is misogyny. For anyone else it is culture.

[Gromit]

Naomi,

Again I am only going off of where I live.
We have 2nd and 3rd generation Asian girls/women who were schooled here, English is their first language.
But the boys/men are married off to cousins from Bangladesh who do not speak English.

But I reckon all of that is a red herring, it is not lack of English that is causing the non-integration.

[cassa333]

It depend what you mean by intergrate.

Although probably a big part of integration is language it means different thing to different people. Does it mean adopt our customs and foibles? Cueing nicely for the lotto ticket and fags? Going to footy on Saturday and church on Sunday and reading the local rag? In essence become (in this case) British with only a nod to your 'home country'.

I do believe anyone who moves to another country should first and foremost learn the language. And secondly NOT get offended by that countries customs and ways. If you don't like the way a country is, because it is different to yours then don't go there to live.

[Hazi-Hammenuhoth]

Why not make it a very basic requirement that, to move to UK, you need to pay to pass an English exam- be able to communicate properly. If you pass, you get your money back. If you don't pass, you don't come. That would be completely fair, instead of expecting British taxpayers to pay for poncy schemes that many of the immigrants don't want in the first place.

[tamaris]

Some very interesting comments here

[Garaman]

To be fair, Hazi, many Brits who move abroad wouldn't pass a language test.

[youngmafbog]

Well that is up to the receiving countries to change then it is not an excuse for us to accommodate, at great expense, those who refuse to learn the lingo.

I do see Gromits pint though language will not necessarily bring an integration with one particular community. Whatever we like to think we are all Kafir and so not welcome. No other Community really has that problem.

[naomi24]

As I said, Brits moving abroad are rarely dependent upon the host country for housing, education, health care, social care, etc. A different scenario altogether.

[youngmafbog]

Thats because the host country is not stupid enough to give them bucket loads of freebies.