“Say things in French!”

“Say things in French!” - The French culture minister has ignited a debate over the encroachment of other languages in France, by telling his followers to “say things in French”. Franck Riester made his plea in a Twitter post on Sunday, which marked the 25th anniversary of the Toubon Law that governs the use of French on TV and radio. The 1994 law banned the use of foreign languages in all TV broadcasts — meaning all foreign-language shows are dubbed. It also dictates that radio stations must play French songs at least 40% of the time. Critics rounded on the minister’s tweet, pointing out that President Emmanuel Macron regularly uses English expressions.