Citizens in Britain's Life Hinges on English Language

Government plans to insist that spouses mostly Somalis should learn English before they are allowed into Britain to join their husbands or wives have run into a barrage of opposition and warnings that the idea could breach human rights laws.

The responses to an official consultation on the proposal, published yesterday, run more than two to one against it, with many warning it could break up marriages as many would-be migrants cannot afford or gain access to English lessons. The anonymous responses were 68 to 31 against a pre-entry English test for spouses.

A common theme of the responses was that English was best learned in the UK, where classes were available and the spouse was immersed in the way of life.

Those who backed the proposal said a lack of English created communication problems and prevented integration. One local government organisation said knowledge of English would mean women from, Somalia and Yemen would be less "tied to the home" and give them a chance of finding work.

The results were published as the home secretary, Jacqui Smith, unveiled the latest immigration enforcement campaign, under which employers who take on illegal migrants are named and shamed on government websites. Smith plans a network of 7,500 enforcement officers in 70 to 80 local immigration teams.

The publication of the strategy was accompanied by raids on bogus colleges and a firm of solicitors believed to be issuing false education documentation.