A charity has translated coronavirus advice into 60 languages (such as Gujarati) to combat what it calls a government "blind spot" A lack of translated coronavirus guidance is jeopardising the safety of non-English speakers in the UK, a joint letter to the health secretary claims.
The government said it has translated public health information into 25 languages, reaching a "wide audience".
But campaigners say it is a "limited range of languages" and the translations can take weeks to be updated when advice or rules change.
One charity said the government has so far shown "no engagement" on the issue.
More than four million people in England and Wales do not consider English to be their main language, including more than 860,000 people who speak little or no English, according to the most recent official figures .
In the UK, 88 languages other than English are spoken as a main language.
A government spokesperson said it "wouldn’t be feasible" to provide translations of all of these languages but that it had translated some of its "key messages" around coronavirus into the most common languages spoken in the UK. No translations of ‘stay alert’ advice But translations have become outdated as guidance has been updated.For example, in March the government provided guidance on social distancing in 11 languages, including Welsh, Urdu, Arabic and Bengali. But this advice was withdrawn on 1 May as guidance changed, and the current social distancing guide for England – which is titled "staying alert and safe" – has not been translated by the government.Other current guidance that has not been translated by the government includes information on the NHS Test and Trace […]
Click here to view full original news page at www.bbc.com
Be part of our community, share and discuss all virus outbreak matters.
Still going to the grocery store? With new variants spreading, it’s probably time to stop.- What’s the difference between viral shedding and reinfection with COVID-19?
- Central Florida virus cases keep rising. Orange mayor wants to avoid second shutdown – for now
- California takes step back from reopening amid virus surge
- Virus-quieted oceans open window for Shark Week researchers
- Covid variant found in South Africa is worrying experts: Here’s what we know so far
- Lebanon OKs law to import vaccines as virus hits new record
- Casino Morongo employees sound alarm on virus cases, prevention measures: ‘We’re still scared’
- Influx of virus cases pushes Anchorage’s contact tracing capacity to its limit
- Utah coronavirus patients experiencing long-term effects from the virus
- COVID-19 infection gives some immunity, but virus can still be spread, study finds
- Lackawanna County: half of virus cases in nursing homes
