'Like a dog walking on his hinder legs'
Norwegian pols have been roundly criticised for speaking poor English:
"Some top Norwegian politicians speak such poor English that they risk losing influence as they stumble through prepared speeches or try to express themselves to foreigners, claims a professor at the University of Oslo. He thinks it's downright embarrassing. Bernt Hagtvedt, a professor of political science at the University of Oslo, is tired of listening to Norwegian politicians speak broken English when addressing foreign audiences".
My Norwegian stems almost entirely from A-level geography - fjord, saeter and so forth, although a friend at university passed on the unforgettable pinnsvin for hedgehog.
While it would be unrealistic for Norwegian politicians to expect much facility in Norwegian from guests beyond Scandinavia, compare this audio clip of Jens Stoltenberg speaking with any memory that one can dredge up of Prescott mangling our native tongue. Yes, Stoltenberg is a bit hesitant, but his meaning is perfectly clear. Likewise former PM Kare Willoch or Erik Solheim.
Anyway, Prescott:
"Some top Norwegian politicians speak such poor English that they risk losing influence as they stumble through prepared speeches or try to express themselves to foreigners, claims a professor at the University of Oslo. He thinks it's downright embarrassing. Bernt Hagtvedt, a professor of political science at the University of Oslo, is tired of listening to Norwegian politicians speak broken English when addressing foreign audiences".
My Norwegian stems almost entirely from A-level geography - fjord, saeter and so forth, although a friend at university passed on the unforgettable pinnsvin for hedgehog.
While it would be unrealistic for Norwegian politicians to expect much facility in Norwegian from guests beyond Scandinavia, compare this audio clip of Jens Stoltenberg speaking with any memory that one can dredge up of Prescott mangling our native tongue. Yes, Stoltenberg is a bit hesitant, but his meaning is perfectly clear. Likewise former PM Kare Willoch or Erik Solheim.
Anyway, Prescott:
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