Britons have the worst command of languages other than their own in Europe. This was the finding of a report released last week to coincide with the launch of the "European Year of Languages 2001", an initiative is being taken to try and promote an improvement in language skills.

Britons came top of the poll, or rather bottom of the class, with 66 per cent of the population admitting they have no knowledge whatsoever of any other language. Second place in the linguaphobes league went to Portugal, where 56 per cent of the population said they know only their native language.

Viviane Reding, EU commissioner responsible for education across Europe, feels that learning a language is essential for better understanding between European countries. "It is the key to building a European identity far removed from the cliches of intolerance and racism," she said.