2 March 2020 by Monidipa
Fouzder
Fears over unregulated interpreters following
law firm rejection
The UK’s only
independent, voluntary regulator of professional interpreters working in the
public sector is concerned that law firms are employing unregulated
interpreters to provide translation services.
Mike Orlov, executive
director of the National Register of Public Service Interpreters (NRPSI), told
the Gazette
that, this month, one law firm reportedly rejected engaging the services of a
NRPSI-registered interpreter because the linguist was not ‘registered’ with a
private agency.
Orlov said little is
known about who are on lists held by privately owned agencies. By contrast,
interpreters on the NRPSI are security-vetted and agree to abide by a code of
professional conduct. A professional standards department handles complaints,
which may be referred to a disciplinary committee.
The NRPSI was set up
in 1994 following a recommendation by the Runciman Royal Commission on Criminal
Justice.
In the NRPSI's latest
annual review, Ted Sangster, chair, said: ‘Given the existence of NRPSI’s
independent professional conduct and disciplinary processes, there is no need
for privately owned agencies – which, by their very nature, are not free from
commercial and other interests – to handle complaints about interpreters, as
long as these interpreters are registrants on the national register.’
Orlov said the
government states that there is no demand across the public sector to mandate
the use of accredited, registered and regulated interpreters. However, he says
in the report: 'Well-trained, qualified and experienced public service
interpreters contribute to the safeguarding of human rights.'
The NRPSI has written
to the government calling for a statutory requirement for all interpreters to
be accredited, registered and regulated by an independent, not-for-profit
organisation. The absence of such a requirement risks a ‘Wild West’ situation,
Orlov told the Gazette.
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