UK companies working, or looking to work, in the international market quickly become aware of the problems of conducting business across linguistic and cultural barriers. Good communication is essential for good business, and without the right linguistic knowledge this can be difficult, if not impossible. However, the development of skilled professionals who can remedy this problem is coming under increasing threat, thanks to the closure of university language departments.

That language programs are among the first to be targeted in university budget cuts demonstrates the need for a reassessment of their usefulness in the world of work. Major cuts at the likes of Oxford, Glasgow and Swansea in the last year have been justified with mentions of ‘financial necessity’ and ‘strategic importance’. But will the ‘business orientated’ model of higher education actually lead to a major skill shortage in UK business?

The Confederation of British Industry has found that over two-thirds of employers are not happy with young people’s foreign language skills and over half see shortfalls in their international cultural awareness. Foreign languages increase the employability, mobility and competitiveness of a workforce, as well as providing invaluable softer skills. Sadly, however, there is a startling disparity in language skills between multilingual migrant workers who make a vital contribution to the UK economy, and the British, who tend to rely on English to conduct business, wherever they are in the world.

Earlier this year the British Academy launched the Language Matters More and More Portfolio, stating that “we can no longer assume that English is the global language par excellence – 75 per cent of the world’s population do not speak English as their first language.” With the developing importance of the BRIC economies - and therefore the likely increase in worldwide use of their languages - it is far from certain how long English will enjoy its status as the world’s lingua franca. Therefore, the marginalisation of language learning could see the UK workforce shut out of the global economy.

Spending cuts, rather than revenue generation, are still supported by some economists as the fastest way to tackle government deficit. However, consider the cost of reopening a language department that has been closed down; this will surely be significantly higher than the cost of maintaining language departments at something close to their current level. When UK businesses find themselves in need of linguists they may well discover that UK universities  no longer have the means to develop them. Only time will tell just how costly that will prove to be.

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