Spain: British immigrants just won't mix

[Harold Schiffman]

They just won't mix
James Montague

Published 03 January 2008

 Observations on emigration

The class began badly. "Como se llama?" the teacher asked hopefully. I
was stumped. I might have been living in 'Alcúdia, 20 miles south of
Valencia, for ten months, but I'd managed to bumble through trips to
the supermarket or post office with a shrug and a "Sí, gracias". This
time, I had come unstuck. Mohammad, a Moroccan electrician,
intervened. "She wants your name," he whispered helpfully. It was my
first Spanish lesson for immigrants, under a government-subsidised
scheme that gives migrant workers basic language skills. Moroccan
butchers, Georgian gardeners and Romanian housewives fill the seats in
the strip-lit room, eager to learn. For ?3 (£2.10) a year, you get
four hours of evening classes a week in intermediate Spanish to help
fill out forms, buy a stamp or pick up some milk. It's a
forward-thinking scheme that seems to benefit everyone. Except for one
group: the British.

Despite there being between one and one and a half million of us
living in Spain, I was the only Brit in the class. For the teachers,
that was no surprise. "The English live apart, with their own jobs and
own bars. They close themselves off," explained Juan, who has been
teaching immigrants Spanish for 25 years at 'Alcúdia's Enric Valor
college. "They just don't try to integrate with the Spanish." This
year's course has been the most popular yet, he said, with 60
immigrants filling three classes. Another 25 are on the waiting list.
"We have a few Scots in the advanced class, but that's the most
British we have ever had." According to the latest figures from the
Office for National Statistics, 58,000 people left for Spain in
2004-2005 and the number is rising. More people emigrated from the UK
in 2006 than has ever been recorded by the ONS. Yet, for the Spanish,
this group of immigrants is proving problematic.

"There are even schools just for British children and they prefer that
to mixing with Spanish children," said Ximo, another teacher at the
college. "The Moroccans, Bulgarians - all of them try to live with us
and try to integrate. The British don't." Even some of the British
immigrants in Spain agree. "The younger generation is learning
Spanish, but the majority are retired, so they either can't or can't
be bothered," says James Parkes, editor of the Costa Blanca News. "The
central government is aiming [Spanish classes] at people outside of
the EU, with a different culture. There's a bit of a 'stuck here with
a load of North Africans' attitude."

The irony in many of the Brits citing immigration and a loss of
national identity as a big reason for upping sticks is not lost on
Parkes. "The Spanish approach it differently because they emigrated in
huge numbers themselves." Maybe that is why Britain's current policy
on English lessons for immigrants is in a mess. Everyone agrees they
would be a good idea, but no one wants to pick up the tab. Private
colleges charge huge fees for basic English lessons, putting them out
of reach for low-wage migrants. A one-term English course at
International House in London will set you back £435. Some further
education colleges offer subsidised courses of English for speakers of
other languages, but even these are expensive. A 15-week course at the
North Essex Adult Community College in my home town of Witham would
cost £99. The Spanish see teaching their language to immigrants - even
language-retarded Brits like me - as an investment. "The idea is to
integrate, because it's better than to live apart," explains Ximo as
he gathers his things for his next class. "Europe needs the immigrants
for work. If we give them something, they give us something back."

http://www.newstatesman.com/200801030017

-- 
**************************************
N.b.: Listing on the lgpolicy-list is merely intended as a service to
its members
and implies neither approval, confirmation nor agreement by the owner
or sponsor of
the list as to the veracity of a message's contents. Members who
disagree with a
message are encouraged to post a rebuttal. (H. Schiffman, Moderator)
*******************************************