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Cut the jargon and speak in plain English, says Bridport councillor (From Bridport and Lyme Regis News)
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Cut the jargon and speak in plain English, says Bridport councillor
10:18am Thursday 30th April 2009
A BRIDPORT town councillor is urging colleagues to cut the jargon and use plain English.
Coun Keith Cast said that much of the time the public did not understand all the terms they used.
His remarks came after Coun Dave Rickard asked the council to support a ‘Transition Town Bridport’ proposal calling on the Secretary of State for Transport to amend the powers of the Highways Agency.
The resolution read: “That where roads under their jurisdiction have a high or significant local strategic importance the powers of that Agency which impinge directly on the structural or functional planning of a local community should be commuted from ‘mandatory’ to ‘advisory with consultation’.
Coun Cast said he looked up the word jargon after reading it and found this was a perfect example of what it meant – ‘words used by a particular group or profession…. the specialised or technical language of a trade, profession, or similar group’.
He said many ordinary people he met in the shops did not know what things like ‘transition town’, ‘mandatory’ and ‘commuted’ meant.
“They don’t have a clue,” he said. “I would ask the council to use simpler descriptions of things.”
Coun Rickard said their proposal was aimed at changing government policy so they had to use the language understood by the people they were addressing.
“That’s the nature of the beast,” he said.
“If people don’t understand it I am happy to explain it.”
Council leader Charles Wild said it would be difficult to simplify this particular resolution – the words ‘mandatory’ and ‘advisory’ were essential to the resolution.
The council agreed to support the proposal which aims to cut red tape and make it easier for the town council to bring in local highway improvements for the benefit of residents.
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