Candidates taking the theory test as part of applying for a driving licence, who are not proficient in any of Belgium's national languages, will soon not be able to call upon interpreters. Such interpreters will be banned.
The Brussels Secretary of State with responsibility for Road Safety, says that this mechanism, to which 2,113 people resorted to last year, does indeed pose an issue.
“Human interpretation does not allow for total exclusion of potential fraud,” Bianca Debaets thus considers in both La Dernière Heure and La Libre Belgique today (Monday).
We are heading for a new candidate audio interpretation system, which will be implemented in 2017.
Designed by GOCA (the group of businesses certified to provide technical checks and issue driving licences), it consists in computer-based interpretation, with pre-recorded audio versions of the different examination questions.
All official translations used will have received prior approval.
The languages which are most frequently spoken in the Brussels region will be offered under the new system. In particular, these are English, German, Spanish, Polish, Turkish, Arab and Italian.
The Brussels Times
