EU could drop English as official tongue
English, the world's second language and the main working tongue of EU institutions, may no longer be an official language of the European Union once Britain leaves the bloc, a senior EU lawmaker said on Monday.
The symbolic, if impractical, move would further reduce London's influence on the continent.
Although English is the most spoken language in Europe, and an official language in three member states, only Britain legally chose it in Brussels.
"English is our official language because it has been notified by the UK. If we don't have the UK, we don't have English," Danuta Hubner, chair of the European Parliament's constitutional affairs committee told a news conference on the legal consequences of the British referendum to leave the EU.
English might remain a working language, even if it were no longer an official one, Hubner said, adding that keeping it an official language would require agreement by all member states.
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