English is new goal for foreign players

Published on Tuesday 6 May 2008 22:06

FOREIGN footballers from outside the European Union will have to be able to speak English before they gain permission to play in the UK, the government announced yesterday.

This could prevent players such as Celtic midfielder Shunsuke Nakamura from being granted a work permit, though the changes will not apply retrospectively.

Nakamura says he is trying to learn English but has had a translator at his side since his arrival from Italian club Reggina in 2005.

UK clubs will also have to prove they have been forced to look abroad because they could not find a home-grown player of sufficient quality.

Immigration minister Liam Byrne said: "We will expect people to be able to acquire a basic level of English. It's not an O-level or an A-level, it's a basic command of the English language.

"We don't expect anybody to come to the UK and work, and work alone. We also expect them to be members of society.

"They will be more successful members of British society if they can speak a bit of English, even if it's only a bit."

The new immigration rules will come into force in the autumn

requiring employers to prove that they cannot fill skilled posts with a British worker before offering a job to a foreigner.

However, exemptions are being made for the Edinburgh Festival – including the international festival, fringe and jazz festival – after Scotland Secretary Des Browne warned the event would be "killed" if such restrictions were introduced on its performers.

The T in the Park music festival and the Glasgow International Jazz Festival will also be exempted.