London’s famous Waterloo Station should be renamed – as should Trafalgar Square – so French tourists are not offended when they come to London.
That is reportedly the viewpoint EU official Francis Carpenter, who also believes French landmarks with “offensive” names such as Austerlitz should be changed so as not to offend tourists’ sensitivities. The Daily Express reports that Mr Carpenter, head of the European Investment Fund, believes such names will “offend a European youth that we are trying to unite”.
He is quoted as telling the French newspaper Le Figaro: “How many young French people, for example, are astonished to find themselves arriving at a London train station called Waterloo, which is near a square called Trafalgar. Why not rename these places to give them a more European theme? Waterloo could become Europe Station and Trafalgar Square would be more convivial if it was named Concord Square.”
The Express reports that Eurostar has “never had any complaints about the station’s name”, while Tory MP Ann Widdecombe stated: “This is nonsense.”
