Regarding the Walt Gardner column "Learning English requires a different approach" in the Aug. 2 edition, Honda's actions aren't belated at all. They stem from the recent effects of the weakening yen to drive Japanese sales abroad so high that better English would make sales more efficient.
Gardner seems to be putting the cart in front of the horse when he says more needs to be done at an earlier age first by teachers. The education ministry is very conservative and would not change the way it monopolizes high school teachers' time — they are so busy working excessive hours because the government can more easily keep an overburdened population of teachers under its control.
That means the only way to change the system is by the very action Honda has taken. Hopefully every sizable business with international aspirations will make their official business language English because the only way to pressure the ministry to do something helpful is the top-down route.
The opinions expressed in this letter to the editor are the writer's own and do not necessarily reflect the policies of The Japan Times.