Not in Britain, unfortunately. This is Switzerland, where they have real democracy, and have a tradition of running things well! from Tribune de Genève

A proposal in Geneva to be voted on next year would see the "dead" language returned as an obligatory subject for junior high school students.

Latin has become a specialty subject, if taught at all, in many parts of the world. But Charles Beer, Geneva’s Socialist education minister wants to make it an obligatory part of schooling again, Le Matin Bleu reports today. “Latin, which is the basis for French, should be accessible to all,” Beer said in outlining a proposal to introduce a program for students in junior high schools (cycles d’orientation).

The proposal, to be submitted to a referendum next year, would see a mandatory course in the language, beginning in seventh year, accompanied by an introductory course in Latin culture. “It will not be about teaching Latin in a classical way, but more to show the principles of the language, such as the etymology of words and the cases,” said Georges Schürch, director of the canton’s junior high schools. “The goal is also to help students in their understanding of German or French.”

If the proposal succeeds, Geneva would be the first in French-speaking Switzerland to reintroduce Latin as a mandatory subject. The canton of Vaud has not yet planned such a program. In 2001 the canton of Neuchâtel, introduced an obligatory course in the “language of culture of Antiquity” for seventh and eighth year students. But it is only for those planning to seek a “maturité,” the equivalent of a high school graduation diploma, necessary for those who want to continue on to university.