The Linguist

The Linguist 52,2

The Linguist is a languages magazine for professional linguists, translators, interpreters, language professionals, language teachers, trainers, students and academics with articles on translation, interpreting, business, government, technology

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NEWS & EDITORIAL NOTES FROM THE CHAIR OF COUNCIL The 'Notes' that appeared in the previous issue were the last to be written jointly by Alan Peacock and Hilary Maxwell-Hyslop after a year working together as our Joint Acting Chief Executives. We are very sorry to say goodbye to Hilary, who was our Director of Examinations for nearly a decade. Her many years of service, not only to the CIOL and the IoL Educational Trust but also to the world of languages more widely, have been recognised by Council in conferring on Hilary the status of Honorary Fellow (HonFCIL). Alan Peacock has assumed the role of Acting Chief Executive, and we are looking forward to welcoming Ann Carlisle, who many of you will know from her work with the Metropolitan Police, as our new Director of Examinations. SMAWG – not a fire-breathing dragon but a senior management arrangements working group. The time has also come to look at our governance, and I am once again indebted to our President, who is chairing a working group on governance. Its recommendations will be shared with the Institute's members, whose views will, of course, be paramount in agreeing the way forward. Turning again to our outward-facing activities, I was pleased to take part in the concluding workshop of the Language Rich Europe project at Europe House in February, when I participated in an in-depth discussion of how the UK economy and the individuals concerned can benefit from the fact that many UK citizens speak a second language at home. The impact of the outsourcing of legal interpreting by the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has continued to be a key issue. The report published in February by the Justice Select Committee, The time has come to look at our governance. Recommendations will be shared with members, whose views will be paramount As Chair of Council, I work with the Chief Executive to strike the right balance between managing the internal affairs of the Institute, which tend to loom large on our agendas, and promoting our outward-facing strategic goals, not least increasing the Institute's visibility, standing and influence. In this latter area, I am grateful to our new President, Nick Bowen, for the valuable work he is doing with the Institute's Vice-Presidents on what might be called 'the bigger picture'. The next six months will almost certainly include our move from Saxon House into new premises. Recent years have seen many important changes, with the divestiture of NRPSI (the National Register of Public Service Interpreters), the assimilation of LSL (Language Services Ltd), the outsourcing of our finance function and the streamlining of premises management that will result from the move. We are therefore conducting a review of our senior management. Tolkien enthusiasts will enjoy the news that this has given rise to to which the Institute submitted written evidence, is very critical of the outsourcing arrangements; this report followed equally critical reports by the National Audit Office and the Public Accounts Committee. The Institute is now a full member of the Professional Interpreters for Justice (PI4J) campaign. I sit as our representative on its steering committee, and I was pleased to speak at a successful and well-attended conference, organised by PI4J at the end of February, on 'Justice Interpreting: The need for quality standards'. As I have reported elsewhere, the PI4J steering committee met with Justice Minister Helen Grant in December, and subsequently with MoJ officials. We are keen to work constructively with the Ministry to resolve the disastrous situation prevailing in the courts. As I write we have heard that the Minister wishes to arrange a further meeting, which I sincerely hope will lead to genuine progress being made before yet more linguists decide permanently to leave the world of legal interpreting. Keith Moffitt 4 The Linguist APRIL/MAY www.iol.org.uk

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