Boris Dilliès, the new Prime Minister of the Brussels Capital Region, a bilingual region, has promised to learn Dutch as soon as possible, as he does not yet speak the language of a majority of the people of Belgium. The premier’s struggle to respond to questions in Dutch from the Flemish press corps at a news conference marking his appointment has dismayed many and attracted attention across northern Belgium. Boris Dilliès (Francophone liberal MR) now wants to do something about his poor Dutch. But how quickly can he learn the language? And is it a difficult language to learn? The Huis van het Nederlands , the House of Dutch in Brussels, assesses his chances.
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After new Brussels PM admits poor Dutch skills, how easily can you learn the language?
Colin Clapson
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On Saturday morning, the mayor of Ukkel, Boris Dilliès, was suddenly asked to become Prime Minister of the Brussels Capital Region. He did not have much time to think about it, because an hour later he had to address the press, also in Dutch. And that was not a success. The man has not spoken Dutch for 20 years. The PM's poor Dutch has attracted a lot of criticism. From political opponents, but also from the people of Brussels.
Patrick Manghelinckx, director of the House of Dutch, also thinks it is a pity that Dilliès does not speak the language. "As a Brussels resident, you expect the regional PM to know the national languages, just like the Prime Minister of Belgium. But I have read that he is aware of this and is willing to work on his Dutch. That is already a very good first step."
The will is there. But how difficult is it to learn Dutch in practice? Manghelinckx: "That depends on a number of parameters. What is his current level of Dutch? Or what level has he ever achieved? But also, what is his learning ability? As mayor and prime minister, I assume he can learn quickly. Now, I have calculated this with my colleagues and it takes 800 full hours to achieve a certain level of Dutch, for example to be able to participate in higher education."
Lots of practice needed
Since 2003, people from Brussels have been welcome at the House of Dutch to learn and practise the language. More and more civil servants are taking advantage of this, says the director.
"We realise that there are still many challenges, but there are municipalities that are taking action to get their staff to take Dutch lessons. We recently started organising Dutch lessons for 60 civil servants in the Brussels municipality of Oudergem. In the City of Brussels, around 175 civil servants have taken Dutch lessons over the past two years. There is movement and interest, but of course there are still a lot of people working in municipalities and government administrations who do not yet know Dutch."
Patrick emphasises that the new Prime Minister Boris Dilliès is also more than welcome at the House of Dutch. But there are a few conditions. ‘We will test his level, then we can enrol him in adult education. He will have to work hard and practise a lot, because you learn a language by using it. And that's not always easy in Brussels.’