Analysis and Comment
As the debates are heating up in the run-up to Britain’s referendum on its EU membership, news editors seek stories with any links to the issue.
In the case of Hak v St Christopher’s Fellowship the claimant, who had some understanding of English, requested the assistance of an interpreter in advance of the tribunal hearing. Unfortunately there were no interpreters available on the day of the hearing.
Cost pressures affecting public bodies are risking the quality of translation services, a survey has suggested – potentially creating further costs through medical misunderstandings, delays to court proceedings and other errors.
The world's governments would be lost without interpreters. Meet the old hands at the UN headquarters and the students who will help us understand one another in the years ahead. Without these guys, nothing gets done.
