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Challenge to Euro civil servants: Give up gobbledygook for a day - if you can!

Chrissie Maher, founder director of Plain English Campaign, has used the 50th anniversary of the EU to challenge Europe's army of civil servants and politicians:

"Celebrate the anniversary by giving up gobbledygook for a whole day. Every time you start to write some phrase such as 'convergence criteria', stop! Use the plain English word or your own plain language instead." she says.

"You'll find you can do without the convoluted phrases. People will understand you better. You can join thousands of people like us who manage every day without using gobbledygook. As politicians and civil servants in the European Community, you have a great responsibility to tell things clearly. Whatever the language, there is a way of doing it. And when you have had your gobbledygook-free day, perhaps you'd like to make the rest of your life free of this rubbish."

Before the big celebrations, Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel pledged a 'people friendly' Berlin Declaration on Sunday 25 March. She said that there would be no 'traditional language of the EU' or bureaucratic technical terms.

Plain English Campaign - and colleagues in similar groups in EU countries - were looking to see what lessons can be learned for improving communications in the future. One campaigner in Belgium, Karine Nicolay, was keen to see how the 'people friendly' Declaration of Berlin translated into 'plain Dutch'.

Karine's newspaper in easy language, Wablieft, has pioneered printing stories which adults with reading difficulties can understand. She said: "A lot of what the EU people write is incomprehensible for 'ordinary' people. They have a great chance to change. But Mrs Merkel has a big task to get that to happen. We will be happy to help."

Plain English Campaign has built up links with other plain language groups, especially in European Community countries such as Belgium, Holland, Denmark, Sweden and Finland. They are part of the Grundtvig project, an EU programme to improve adult education across Europe. Earlier in 2007, members met in the Belgian town of Lier to review progress. Peter Griffiths, of the PEC, says: "We are heading to the next stage with some worthwhile objectives."

Public still baffled by politicians

A recent survey by Plain English Campaign suggests that nearly 90% of people think that politicians should communicate more clearly. Some 73% of those who responded claimed that they would be more interested in politics if it was more accessible.

The legal sector also came under fire, with 35% of those polled voting it the worst at communicating clearly. Only 7% of those who took part in the survey claimed that they have never been confused by an official form, while 83% think that organisations deliberately make it difficult for the public to understand their documents.

Ben Beer, a spokesman for the campaign, said: "We had a great response to the survey, and the results are very interesting. If nothing else they prove that, in many people's eyes, there is still a lot of work to be done by politicians and public organisations to improve the way they communicate."

On a brighter note, nearly all those surveyed believe that a grasp of basic grammar is still important, with 81% calling for plain English to be added to the national curriculum.

The results of the survey in full

IT departments are the worst, say human resources

Human resources staff have singled out IT departments as being the most difficult to communicate with. They say that IT staff have complex ways of working and spout gobbledygook, which alienates other staff and causes 'departmental feuds', according to a study by software company Sage. Acronyms, jargon and complex procedural documents are more prolific in IT than in any other department.

An organisation's marketers seem less involved in internal squabbles, but when asked, they, like human resources, rated the IT department as the likeliest cause of tension.

"Competition has always existed between departments in the business world, and different parts of the business will tend to use different terminology and language," said David Pinches of Sage.

"However, as customers demand more, and business operations are required to become 'slicker', it will become increasingly important for the company and its various departments to communicate more effectively between one another."

Tesco agrees to correct its grammar

The Chief Executive of supermarket giant Tesco, Terry Leahy, has sent us a letter saying that the store are changing the signs that are displayed above its express checkouts. Pedants all over the country have always moaned that the traditional '10 items or less' sign is grammatically incorrect. Following a number of complaints from members of the public as well as ourselves, Tesco's signs will now read 'Up to 10 items'.

Mr Leahy wrote

'You will now be pleased to learn that, following letters like yours, we are in the process of changing this signage. In all new stores the signage will now read 'Up to 10 items'. We will then follow a programme of replacing existing signs in stores undergoing refurbishment or as and when signage needs to be replaced.'

Let us hope that other retailers will follow Tesco's example!

New 'waffle-buster' software to be released

'Drivel Defence' is a free software application which has been developed by John Rugg, a web accessibility specialist from the University of the West of England, with some help from Plain English Campaign. The software uses our 'A-Z of alternative words' guide to inspect webpages and other documents, and checks accessibility and readability issues.

The software has been tested by the University's IT department, and is now available on this website.

John says, "There are two versions. The first one allows you to check any text by copying it from any computer application and pasting it into a checking window. It will give you a detailed report on your plain English and can help with writing clear letters and reports for example. There is a second version which can help web developers check the plain English content of their web pages."

Ben Beer of Plain English Campaign adds "We are very grateful to John for his considerable efforts in creating this software, which we hope people across the English-speaking world will find useful. For far too long, public information websites have been cluttered with impenetrable information and gobbledygook. Using Drivel Defence makes it easy for web editors and journalists to check that their webpages are written in plain, accessible English.

Business jargonbuster appears online

After several recent media stories about business jargon and 'management-speak', a new jargonbuster aims to help those people who are confused by phrases such as 'apple polish', 'head-count freeze' and 'stick to your knitting'.

The guide is produced by www.theofficelife.com and you can suggest words and phrases which do not yet appear in the guide. You can find the jargonbuster at http://www.theofficelife.com/business-jargon-dictionary-A.html

Spoof horror DVD wins communication award

We would like to congratulate Somerset Work Preparation and the Engine Room for producing the winning entry in the Southwest Total Communication Network's easy language competition for people with learning difficulties.

The winners produced the comic horror DVD called 'Germ Academy' which shows the importance of cleanliness and the dangers of germs. They received their award at a ceremony in Taunton from Roger Berry MP.

The competition, whose theme was health information, is judged by people with learning difficulties and received 16 entries from all over the south-west.

For more information about this year's competition and how to get a copy of 'Germ Academy', contact Carol Robinson on 07816 034 463

Cameron calls for clearer food labelling

Conservative leader David Cameron has further demonstrated a commitment to plain English by calling for clearer information on food labels, to allow people to buy genuinely British food.

At the moment all produce processed in the UK can be labelled as British. Cameron told the Oxford Farming Conference that it was "completely wrong" that food "can be imported to Britain, processed here, and subsequently labelled in a way that suggests it's genuinely British."

He said that more people wanted to buy British food, and said that consumers "can find it difficult to back British farmers, because of inadequate labelling."

When were you first called a plonker?

The Oxford English Dictionary is teaming up with the BBC in a 'Wordhunt' to trace the origin of 40 words and phrases, including 'plonker', 'flip-flops' and 'shaggy-dog story'. Each word being traced has a 'date of origin', but researchers are interested in whether these words were in fact in use before that date. The research is for the second series of 'Balderdash & Piffle' which will air on BBC2.

The chief editor of the Oxford English Dictionary, John Simpson, said "Wordhunters made some remarkable discoveries in the last series. They found 'Wordhunt' words tucked away in football fanzines, LPs, school newspapers: just the sort of sources we can't easily get our hands on when we are researching words."

So if you were called a 'plonker' before 1966, send your evidence to the 'Balderdash & Piffle' team (e-mail balderdash@bbc.co.uk) and it might feature in the series.

Job applications are full of mistakes, says survey

Almost half of all job applicants make basic grammatical and spelling mistakes, according to the results of a survey conducted for the BBC. The Recruitment and Employment Federation surveyed 266 organisations and discovered that 47% of job applicants do not bother to check their spelling before firing off their application.

The survey also found that 70% of firms felt that women were less 'guilty' of making mistakes than men. Applicants aged between 21 and 25 were found to have made the most mistakes.

Common mistakes included misspelling 'curriculum vitae', 'liaison' and 'personal'. Other errors included misplaced apostrophes and poor sentence construction. The labour affairs correspondent for the BBC, Stephen Cape, said the research indicated that many young people were missing out on job opportunities because of poor spelling and confusing applications.

Speaking on BBC Wales, Plain English Campaign spokesman Ben Beer said:

"It is worrying that so many people can be careless when it comes to writing a CV or covering letter. The fact is that poor writing gives the reader a bad impression of the writer. Sending an employer an application filled with mistakes will make them wonder whether you are sloppy and careless in your job. It may well be the difference between being employed or not."

Recruitment and Employment Confederation chief executive Marcia Roberts said that people should consult recruitment firms as well as friends before sending off job applications.

She added:

"Candidates who make errors run the risk of missing out on being shortlisted for a job for which they may have the right experience and qualifications."

Naomi Campbell wins Foot in Mouth award

The British supermodel, Naomi Campbell, has won Plain English Campaign's annual Foot in Mouth award for the following comment which she reportedly made in June 2006.

"I love England, especially the food. There's nothing I like more than a lovely bowl of pasta."

The Foot in Mouth award is given for a baffling quote made by a public figure. Past winners of the award include Donald Rumsfeld, Richard Gere, Alicia Silverstone and Tracey Emin.

Seven Golden Bulls for gobbledygook have been awarded this year, including one to the writer, broadcaster and academic, Germaine Greer. Fife Council won a Golden Bull for a confusing letter about bin collection dates. Wheale, Thomas, Hodgins, a recruitment agency, landed a second Golden Bull for a job advertisement, having previously won one in 2001.

Broadcast journalist Mary Nightingale will present the awards at the Brewery, Chiswell Street, London EC1Y 4SD on 12 December 2006. It will be the 27th Plain English Campaign awards ceremony.

Winners of 'good' awards include Harriet Harman MP, who has won the Osborne Award for services to plain English. Radio 2 presenter Jeremy Vine has won the award for the best national radio programme, while politics show This Week picks up the national television award.

Six organisations have won Plain English awards for clear writing, including The Essential Business Guide, which is the first comprehensive business publication to win the award. World Cancer Research Fund won a Plain English award for the second time. Six government departments have won an Inside Write award for clear internal communication.

'Plain English' category (for the year's clearest documents)

• The Essential Business Guide Ltd for 'The Essential Business Guide'
• World Cancer Research Fund for 'Breast awareness' card
• Helena Housing for 'Resident's Handbook'
• The Department for Social Development for 'Directory of services for
older people'
• ASDA for a product recall notice
• National Osteoporosis Society for the 'Living with osteoporosis' guide

'Inside Write' category (for clear internal government documents — civil servants writing for other civil servants)

• Ministry of Defence for 'Navy News'
• UK Trade & Investment for 'Our World' magazine
• Welsh Assembly Government for 'Rules for Tables'
• HM Revenue & Customs for 'Chatterbox' magazine
• UK Visas for 'Managing e-mail'
• Department for Work and Pensions for 'The DWP journey' leaflet

Media Awards

Best National Newspaper: The Guardian
Best Regional Newspaper: Newcastle Evening Chronicle
Best National Radio Programme: The Jeremy Vine Show (BBC Radio 2)
Best Regional Radio Station: Pirate FM (Cornwall)
Best National Television Programme: This Week (BBC 1)
Best Regional Television Programme: X-Ray (BBC Wales)

Web Award (for the year's clearest website):

HM Prison Service (www.hmprisonservice.gov.uk)

Osborne Award (for services to plain English):

Harriet Harman MP

Foot in Mouth Award :

Naomi Campbell

"I love England, especially the food. There's nothing I like more than a lovely bowl of pasta."

Golden Bull winners

Crafts Council of Ireland (CCOI) for a circular letter

'The re-writing of the vocabulary of intemporal Irish heritage is a possible vector for submissions on the condition that this transposition is resolutely anchored in the 21st century through a contemporary lens that absolutely avoids drifting into the vernacular.'

Germaine Greer for a column in the Guardian

'The first attribute of the art object is that it creates a discontinuity between itself and the unsynthesised manifold.'

Bury County Court for a 'General Form of Judgment or Order'

'IT IS ORDERED THAT THE CLAIM BE ADJOURNED GENERALLY WITH PERMISSION TO THE CLAIMANT TO RESTORE TO THE LIST WITHOUT FORMAL APPLICATION NOT LATER THAN 16:00 HOURS ON THE 12TH SEPTEMBER 2006 WHEREUPON THE CLAIM DO STAND STRUCK OUT IF NOT SO RESTORED'

Eastleigh Borough Council for a Notice given under the Building Act 1984

'Hereby in accordance with the provision of the Building Act 1984, Section 32 declares that the said plans shall be of no effect and accordingly the said Act and the said Building Regulations shall as respects the proposed work have effect as if no plan had been deposited.'

Wheale, Thomas, Hodgins plc for a job advertisement

'Our client is a pan-European start-up leveraging current cutting edge I.P. (already specified) with an outstanding product/value solutions set. It is literally the right product, in the right place at the right time… by linking high-value disparate legacy systems to achieve connectivity between strategic partners/acquisition targets and/or disparate corporate divisions. The opportunity exists to be the same (i.e. right person etc. etc) in a growth opportunity funded by private equity capital that hits the 'sweet-spot' in major cost driven European markets.'

Fife Council for a letter about a change to bin collection dates

'It has been brought to our attention that due to changes made to your grey household wastes bin collection dates within your new calendar. Your bin will be emptied week beginning the 20th March 2006, then next collection would not be until the week beginning the 10th April 2006. Thus having to wait 3 weeks for collection.

Therefore we are to provide a normal collection on your normal collection day, week starting the 3rd April and again on your new collection date, week starting the 10th April then there after every 2 weeks.'

The Institute for Fiscal Studies for a website document description

'While the literature on nonclassical measurement error traditionally relies on the availability of an auxiliary dataset containing correctly measured observations, this paper establishes that the availability of instruments enables the identification of a large class of nonclassical nonlinear errors-in-variables models with continuously distributed variables.'

Media Award winners announced

Journalists from newspapers, television and radio will celebrate as they collect awards for crystal-clear reporting.

There are six awards in the media category of the annual Plain English Campaign awards. The winners are chosen for the clarity of their reporting. The judges take into account nominations and comments from Campaign supporters.

Broadcast journalist Mary Nightingale will present the awards at the Brewery, Chiswell Street, London EC1Y 4SD on 12 December 2006. It will be the 27th Plain English Campaign awards ceremony, although the media category was not introduced until 1991. The ceremony also includes the dreaded Golden Bull booby prizes for the year's most baffling gobbledygook.

The media award winners are listed below with the judges' comments.

Best National Newspaper: The Guardian

The Guardian wins this award for the second year running, having continued to set the standard for national newspaper journalism. The pages are well designed and laid out, with good use of colour. On the whole, the language used is clear and accessible. The quality of free supplements and gifts remains excellent and the paper has one of the best news and features websites around.

Best Regional Newspaper: Newcastle Evening Chronicle

The Newcastle Evening Chronicle has a wide range of well-written local news stories, good entertainment and sport coverage, and clear regional 'what's on' listings. The tabloid format has an uncluttered layout, with striking headings and photography that draw the reader's attention. Many people still rely on local papers for the day's news, and the Chronicle is one of the best regional papers we have seen in recent years.

Best National Television Programme: This Week (BBC1)

While reality television shows continue to flood the networks, This Week offers viewers a chance to watch lively political discussion at its best. Andrew Neil, Michael Portillo and Diane Abbott are incisive, informative and very often irreverent, yet the debating is enjoyable, accessible and easy to follow. There is an effective mix of political and celebrity guests, and the 'alternative' video reports of the week's news are very amusing.

Best Regional Television Programme: X-Ray (BBC Wales)

X-Ray is dedicated to fighting for the rights of local consumers, helping them to settle their complaints. Thorough yet clearly-presented investigations help viewers understand their rights as consumers. The programme gives useful tips about 'scammers' and other potential pitfalls, and explains what to do if you have been a victim of these. The whole show is delivered clearly, and is very informative and enjoyable to watch.

Best National Radio Programme: The Jeremy Vine Show (BBC Radio 2)

Jeremy Vine and his team discuss the issues of the day with politicians, celebrities and members of the public, providing lunchtime listeners with penetrating and often poignant debates. Plain speaking and no-nonsense questioning come as standard, and from Iraq to next year's UK smoking ban, every topic is discussed in a way that is entertaining and accessible to every listener.

Best Regional Radio Station: Pirate FM (Cornwall)

Pirate FM has an obvious desire to bring together as many people as possible. Its package of news and local views is well-balanced and fun. It can only be described as addictive. The production team clearly respects the audience, producing programmes that are presented clearly and concisely.

HM Prison Service win Plain English Web Award

HM Prison Service are this year's winners of Plain English Campaign's award for the clearest website. There were a record number of entries for the award, but judges were very impressed by the service's site, which can be found at www.hmprisonservice.gov.uk

Campaign spokesman Ben Beer said "Nowadays it is absolutely vital that organisations have clear and accessible websites, especially when they contain a lot of information. The Prison Service have taken the needs of web visitors into consideration, and the site is very user-friendly. We were astonished by the number of websites that were nominated this year, and I have to say that the overall standard was very high."

The judges' report said:

"The Prison Service website contains a great deal of useful information for those people who need to know about the prison system, from support group contacts to prison regulations. This can be a very difficult subject for some people, yet the website has a warm and sensitive tone. The design and navigation is clear and simple to use, and it is easy for visitors to find the information they are looking for."

Broadcast journalist Mary Nightingale will present the awards at the Brewery, Chiswell Street, London EC1Y 4SD on 12 December 2006. It will be the 27th Plain English Campaign awards ceremony, although the website category was not introduced until 2000. The ceremony also includes the dreaded Golden Bull booby prizes for the year's most baffling gobbledygook.


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