Sir Mike Penning spoke in Parliament on Friday during the Third Reading of the British Sign Language (BSL) Bill.

The Bill has now passed all stages in the House of Commons and moves on to the House of Lords in a race against time to complete all stages before the end of the Parliamentary session.

The BSL Bill is a Private Member’s Bill which will make British Sign Language (BSL) the fourth official language of the United Kingdom and set up a British Sign Language Council to promote and advise on the use of BSL in public services.

Sir Mike, who co-sponsored the Bill with Labour MP Rosie Cooper, is a patron of the Hertfordshire Hearing Advisory Service and a long-time campaigner on deaf issues.

Sir Mike said:

“This is such a momentous day for deaf people in this country. For many deaf people, BSL is their first language, and they have every right to expect to be able to communicate with Government and local authorities in their first language.

“I give credit to the Government for backing this Private Member’s Bill and I urge members of the House of Lords not to try to amend this Bill or do anything that will delay it. Let’s get it passed in Parliament and written into law and then if anything needs adjusting we can do it later.

“I pay tribute to the work of the deaf community and everyone who has supported the campaign for this Bill for all the work they have done in making this happen. We are so close now, let’s get this done!”