PROPOSALS by Reform UK to criminalise election materials produced in Gaelic and Scots have been blasted by speakers, with the party being accused of mimicking moves by Spanish dictator Francisco Franco.
Nigel Farage's party has moved an amendment to a Westminster bill that would, if passed, criminalise all political materials that are not in English or Welsh.
If Reform's amendment to the Representation of the People Bill is passed, those in breach of the law could be jailed for up to six months and could also face a fine.
After being approached by The National, a Reform UK spokesperson claimed that the "amendment was drafted for application in elections in England and Wales, not Scotland and Northern Ireland".
However, the amendment features two paragraphs which explicitly lay out criminal punishments in Scotland and the act it would amend extends across the UK.
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Reform UK said criminalising Gaelic and Scots in Scotland was not the intention of the amendment and described this as an “administrative mess-up”
Scots speaker and author Billy Kay claimed the proposals from Reform mimicked actions carried out in Catalonia during the Francisco Franco regime.
Referencing extracts of his book Scots: The Mither Tongue, he said: “During the fascist era, the Franco years, there were public buildings in Barcelona proclaiming ‘Habla el idioma del imperio’ – speak the language of empire, and that just sounds like what Farage is trying to do, to make us all stop speaking our own languages and speak the language of empire.
“It’s been the attitude of English imperialists for centuries […] and those attitudes have prevailed against native languages in Britain.”
Former SNP election candidate and Gaelic speaker Eilidh Munro told The National Reform had put out a “feeble” excuse as she hit out at the party’s “ignorance” of the languages.
She said: "An 'administrative mess up' is a feeble attempt to excuse the Reform party's own incompetence and ignorance about what are, somewhat ironically, Scotland's native languages, and which are, as of last year's Scottish Languages Act, recognised as our official languages along with English.
"I feel pity for those who, upon encountering a language they don't understand, feel fear rather than curiosity, whatever that language is. This sadly isn't, by any means, limited to members of the Reform party.
"If Scotland is your home, whether by birth or by choice, you should be able to be fully included in our country's democratic processes. This includes parties having the freedom to produce election materials in Gaelic, Scots, Polish, Arabic or any other relevant language to support democratic engagement across our communities.
"I met so many people during the Holyrood election campaign who were very appreciative of receiving some election materials in Gaelic, as well as being able to speak to me in Gaelic when I chapped their door.”
Reform’s apparent attack on Gaelic comes after the party came in for heavy criticism last year when Nigel Farage described bilingual Glasgow schoolchildren as “culture-smashing” the city.
Nigel Farage also attacked the Welsh language earlier this year when he referred to speakers as "foreign" in a video.
Munro added: “Multilingualism is hugely beneficial, on both an individual and a societal level. In particular, it helps you think through a different cultural lens, and appreciative differing perspectives, something which is needed more so now than ever before in a political climate that is so polarised."
The amendment was put forward by Reform UK deputy leader Richard Tice and was backed by party MPs Lee Anderson, Sarah Pochin, Danny Kruger, Robert Jenrick, Andrew Rosindell, and Suella Braverman.
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The SNP have said that Reform UK are plotting "to crush Scotland's native Scots and Gaelic languages".
Gaelic speaker and former MSP Alasdair Allan said Reform’s approach to Gaelic did not chime with a general cross-party consensus in Scotland to protect the language.
“What’s motivating this really is just trying to stoke up fears about anyone, anywhere in Britain who speaks any other language. There is no need for this whatsoever and whether they thought about Scotland or not, the effect of it would be to ban election materials in Gaelic, for instance,” he said.
“There was a lot of Gaelic in my online election material.
“It’s quite unfortunate because until recently there had been a cross-party consensus that Scotland should be doing something to celebrate its Gaelic heritage but now there seems to be, in some quarters, not just a fear of Gaelic but of any other language which is not a healthy development.
“I think some people have got it into their heads that Gaelic is the invention of one part of the political spectrum. Gaelic has been in Scotland for at least 1500 years. It’s not a recent development and I think some people have got it into their heads they can further their political point by posturing in an anti-Gaelic way. I don’t really understand that.”
Reform UK MSP Max Bannerman told The National he “can guarantee that Reform UK is committed to protecting the linguistic heritage of Britain."
"This is not about diminishing Scotland’s identity or heritage," he added.
