Bogus tourists test our linguistic talents

8:32am Wednesday 1st October 2003

BOGUS tourists who secretly tested the linguistic talents of people in South Lakeland found locals “fantastically friendly” but tongue-tied when it came to foreign languages, writes Lisa Frascarelli.

Researchers disguised as hapless tourists took to the streets of Kendal and found simple questions such as: “Where can I get the bus to Windermere?” left lots of listeners stumped.

Staged by the Regional Language Network North West, Friday’s set-up was designed to test the linguistic skills of residents and business owners as part of the European Day of Languages.

Although people from South Lakeland scored few points when it came to speaking basic French, they did wow organisers with their “overwhelming friendliness”.

Spokesperson for the RLN NW Simon Shrouder, who posed with the fake foreigners, stressed that there was a serious message behind the stunt.

“We wanted to highlight that foreign language is a very important part of the modern world and unless businesses develop language skills and introduce language strategies they risk losing major trade opportunities,” he warned.

He added that the people of Kendal had faired better than those tested in Manchester and Liverpool.

“Not only were the people of Kendal extremely friendly and polite, some did manage to understand a few words,” he said.

The set-up follows the publication of a major survey by the North West Development Agency that revealed more than one fifth of businesses in the region admitted to losing trade because of language barriers.

The information from the survey will be used by both the NWDA and RLN NW to install measures to help businesses improve their international trade performance.