Apostrophe loses its place on street signs

A LOCAL authority was accused of "dumbing down" today after ruling that apostrophes should not feature on its road and street signs.

Birmingham City Council hopes the decision will end decades of dispute, and follows a review on whether the possessive punctuation mark should be restored to place names such as Kings Norton and Druids Heath.

Martin Mullaney, who chairs the city's transportation scrutiny committee, conceded that the new city-wide policy would upset many residents.

The decision not to reintroduce apostrophes, which began to disappear from Birmingham's road signs in the Fifties, had been taken in light of factors such as the need for consistency and the cost of changing existing signs, he said.

"We are constantly getting residents asking for apostrophes to be put back in and we have got to make a decision one way or another," he said.

"Both the Plain English Society and the Plain Language Commission have said that there is no rule in Britain with regards to possessive apostrophes in place names."

John Richards, chairman of the Apostrophe Protection Society, said: "It seems retrograde, dumbing down really. The council would be better advised to make sure the right apostrophes are in place rather than removing them. It sets a bad example to children."