EU translation costs spiralling out of control

The "costs of interpretation and translation in an expanded EU are spiraling out of control, according to a separate draft report from the legislature's budgetary control committee" the International Herald Tribune writes in today's online edition.

According to the article, nearly Euro 26 million (US$ 31 million) - representing 16 percent of the Euro163 million spent on interpretation - is used to hire translators who are on call or sitting idle.

The draft report from the Parliament's budgetary control committee notes that the cost for interpreting 20 languages in a one- day meeting can be as high as Euro 118,000, compared with Euro 6,000 to Euro 9,000 for three languages. Yet the European Union defends its translation policy on grounds of the democratic nature of the union. A representative of the Liberal party points out that "the hefty cost of translation was justified since it was essential for democracy in the bloc that citizens could understand debates in their own languages."

A recent report by the budgetary control committee notes that the interpretation costs could be decreased if the "Parliament's cumbersome triple location in Brussels, Strasbourg and Luxembourg" were brought together.

The recent EU expansion has brought an increase in costs for hiring interpreters for a one-day meeting cost about Euro 40,000 to Euro 88,500, due to number of language having risen from 11 to 20.

Source: International Herald Tribune