In the first reading, the Verkhovna Rada (the Ukrainian Parliament) supported draft law No. 9432 on the use of the English language in Ukraine.
The MP of the "Voice" faction Yaroslav Zheleznyak reported this. The document was supported by 278 MPs.
The draft law officially establishes the status of the English language as one of the languages of international communication in Ukraine, defines the positions for which candidates are required to speak English, regulates the peculiarities of the use of the English language in the work of state bodies, local self-government bodies, emergency aid units, when crossing the border, in in the fields of education, transport and health care.
- In August of last year, the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy developed a draft law on establishing a special status of English in Ukraine as the language of international communication.
- On June 28, 2023, the Verkhovna Rada registered draft law No. 9432 on the English language, which was initiated by President Zelensky. It caused a public outcry, as it provided for an increase in the share of films in the original language and the replacement of dubbing with Ukrainian subtitles. A petition was created on the presidentʼs website demanding the preservation of the Ukrainian dubbing, which received more than 29 000 votes out of the 25 000 required.
- On July 20, the Committee removed from the draft law all norms that would have narrowed the scope of the Ukrainian language on television and in film distribution, in particular on dubbing.