BRACE yourselves. Even before the vexed single European currency is up and running the idea was floated this week, of a single official European language. The suggestion came in a written submission from an Italian Euro-MP who believes a community-wide single language would "be the ultimate expression of full integration". A single language, generally dismissed as fantasy by Brussels bureaucrats, would save billions of pounds of taxpayers' money on Tower of Babel translation services, now costing the community around £2.5 billion per annum.

As things stand, the EU is a club of 15-member states with II working languages. Apparently at least 33 interpreters are required for each meeting to cope with 110 linguistic combinations, which could rise to more that 300 combinations in a union of 20 states, requiring at least 60 translators per meeting. Meanwhile work continues to find the perfect automated translation system allowing cost cuts without embarrassing linguistic mistakes. Experiments in translation by computer have thrown up some bowlers.

One Euro-MP was translated as seeking permission to "expose himself to the committee" and industrialists attending an environmental meeting were described as people "passing water into the public supply system".

The written suggestion this week from the Italian MP is likely to be politely turned down, the reasons conveyed in 11 main languages.