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Greater use of Catalan by government bodies to be made law

Employment minister Iago Negueruela. | Alejandro Sepúlveda

| Palma |

The government is to amend a decree from 1990 which will mean that all bodies which receive either partial or total public funding will have to use Catalan as the main language.

The culture minister Fanny Tur, who has responsibility for language "normalisation" (or standardisation), is to introduce various changes to the decree that hasn't been updated since the time when Maria Munar was culture minister. The new rules will apply to written and verbal communications, and the government itself will also have to use Catalan as the preferred language.

Tur's ministry will guarantee the right for documents to be supplied in Castellano, if they are requested. Civil servants should always start verbal communications with the public in Catalan but "without prejudicing the right to be attended to in Castellano".

Public bodies will maintain the obligation for external and internal signage to be in Catalan. All radio and television programmes sponsored by the government will have to use Catalan, as will sports events that the government supports.

Senior officials and government ministers should use Catalan, although Castellano can be used. Not all officials and ministers are fluent. The employment minister, Iago Negueruela, is one of them. He has typically addressed parliament in Castellano. He is taking classes to improve his Catalan fluency.

Not all senior officials and politicians are native Catalan speakers. Another notable one is Alberto Jarabo of Podemos. He does, though, speak Catalan fluently.

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