Straight talking: guide promotes plain English

GOVERNMENT and council officials, political organisations and other groups which use wordy language with the public are to be given a few lessons in using plain English.

The aim of the guide, produced by the National Adult Literacy Agency (NALA), is to help provide more effective communication to the 500,000 Irish people with literacy and numeracy difficulties.

Author Dr Katherine Zappone, a lecturer in the school of Hebrew, Biblical and Theological Studies at Trinity College, has compiled an A to Z - almost - of everyday terms used in civic and political life.