The Euro

[Anonymous]

So, is Britain going to change it's currency or not? I thought I read in the paper a while back that there was going to be a vote on it. Do you think it's a good idea or not? I would like to see Britain keep the pound but I don't live there anymore so I'm not sure if it's a good idea or not. We came to Germany before they had the euro and prices were definately a bit higher after the change over. Although I have to say the change over went really easy. Do you really consider Britain a part of Europe anyway?

[Anonymous]

Me and Colin were over in the Netherlands last year and by the sounds of things they love it.

They had initial concerns over prices during the changeover period but things have settled down again now that everyone is getting used to the value of the euro. They can just nip over the border and get cheap goods if they need to. But suppliers of cheap goods have moved into their country as they now dont have currency issues to overcome.

I know this is going to upset suppliers in our own country, but as has been proven time and time again, these people are already ripping us off and these "cheap" european suppliers are actually just selling at fair prices.

I was so shocked by the cost of living over on the mainland that I nearly stayed. Love it here too much though.

I have also seen some of the large companies in the UK crying out for the euro as it makes their trade with the mainland much cheaper and allows for better profit margins. Indeed many large companies in the UK already use the Euro and have moved operations into Euroland.

So, if you havn't already guessed, I'm all for it. Be glad to see the back of sterling and all the imperial control it signifies.

Look forward to better prices and fair competition in Euroland.

[Anonymous]

If ya would liek to see what the euro's look like you could give this screensaver a go.

http://www.uselesscreations.com/money

its my personal fav.

The only UK money it has are English Pounds so I use the Euro option, nicer notes imo.

[Bill Fernie]

If you want a quick look at the notes and coins we have them at http://www.caithness.org/links/euro.htm
Anyone whohas travelled in the USA or any other large area using a single currency will know how much easier life is. The UK has some unusual economic considerations broguht about by historical associations and no doubt we could remain out of the new set up forever. Sometimes this might be good but at others being out of step will make life much more difficult for businesses like now when the pound is high against our neighbours currency. A single currency would even out these ups and downs. Obviously there are many things to be consdiered but the longer it is left the decision may get hardr rather than easier. It is never going to come if we always look on it as picking the least painful time to go in rather than an opportunity to be grasped.
The pound may still be a big currency but its power is likely to diminish when compared with the Euro zone and its huge economically active population. Other countries have managed to get over their affection for their own currency and are now living with the reality of the great cost savings for business across the continent while we in the UK still have to convert for every transaction abroad. European business people can now concentrate more on their business and less on the exchange rates on any given transaction....unless its with the UK.
Persanally I do not really care what the oney is called although maybe we could give the small change our own local names...........the Groat comes to mind for the cents/pennies.

[jjc]

Having spent a few weeks in 2001 upgrading the financial system of my company to cope with the Euro in our European offices and outlets, it strikes me that once an effective system is in place to trade in the Euro the hassle of considering the exchange rates is nonexistent to most of the business functions – and don't forget that if you were trading within the "Euro-zone" then, legally, you should have that system in place already. It's not like every business transaction is carried out on paper these days. We use computer systems, and those systems should be more than capable of dealing with the Euro/Sterling conversion. If they aren't then perhaps there are more fundamental problems with your business than the strength of the Pound…

One thing that going into the Euro will guarantee is that we will no longer have control over our own economy. If Labour stuff up and, just as an example, hike our National Insurance contributions too much (guess who just opened his pay packet for the first time since the stealthy rise of NI!!!) then we can simply vote them out and let somebody else have a go – but we get to decide who has a go.

If we join the single currency then we can't do that. Control of our monetary system will be passed to Brussels. That may not sound so bad, but just take a look around the various economies in the "Eurozone".
Germany is hardly blossoming - unemployment rocketing and a growth rate of just 0.2% last year.
France looks likely to be fined by Brussels for having a deficit of 3.4% (the maximum allowed by Brussels being 3%).
Portugal hit a deficit of 4.7% in November last year.

If we enter the single currency then we are going to have to change our own economic strategy in order to kick-start the ailing economies of our cohorts in the Euro.

There are many things which I take issue with when it comes to our government. Looking around the world at the moment, our economy isn't one of them. I'm no economist, adding up is difficult enough, but it does seem as though we aren't doing all that badly. Sure, we aren’t exactly booming at the moment, but who is? At least our economy is relatively healthy and, more importantly, under control. Yes, the pound is up compared to our neighbours - but is that because of our economy or theirs?

Do we really want to hand over our economy to Brussels just so we don't need to work out the conversion rate when we go on holiday and buy a Mars bar?

[MadPict]

SAY NO TO THE EURO

NO 2 €

Is that plain enough?

To balance out the pro-euro stance of CCWS -

http://www.no-euro.com/

http://www.euro-know.org/

http://www.freebritain.co.uk/

http://hometown.aol.co.uk/MadPict/images/borgsmile.gifMadPict - ££££££££££££££££££
http://hometown.aol.co.uk/MadPict/images/gruff_ext.gif

[Bill Fernie]

I have not positively made up my mind on the matter but perhaps those of you wanting to see some arguments on both sides might like alook at http://www.theeurodebate.co.uk/
Have a dram at your side and sip steadily as you go...........................

[Anonymous]

It is not an economic argument. It is solely political and if you wish to be ruled by Brussels, and use the euro, then go and live there. If anyone will vote for the euro yet still expect to retain any semblance of independence, then they have serious mental health problems.
What started as the European Steel Community, (correct me if thats not exact I cannot check it here.) Has grown exponentially to encompass every aspect of life in this country and the sad fact is that every Government since Edward Heath's has jumped on the bandwagon. Not because its better for you or me, but because it creates more laws, more committees and more power to our elected representatives.
Find me a politician that would say, " I have an idea! Let's get rid of some of these laws, committees and other sundry commissions, and then we will not need as many of us! "
That may be popular with the people but it would be political suicide.
No, we are going to have more and more government, and less and less sense. We do not need a federal (interim) constitution before someone, students of history does this ring bells, decides that the only way forward is to unite Europe economically and politically, do away with national parliaments as an irrelevant tier of government, and then how long before Stalingrad.
Sorry about ranting, but I do passionately hate any idea of a Superstate in Europe,
Paddy

[gordon the moron]

Paddy you have really lost the plot this time. Sorry mate but they're going to be taking you away. Do you not believe Mr Blair when he says we must effect change from within Europe and not from the sidelines. Do you not see the sacrifice he is making, damaging his re-election chances from a selfless point of view, in promoting the dissolution of pound sterling and placing himself in the invidious position where one day he may have to make the ultimate sacrifice of resigning the Premiership of his beloved country to take his place as President of Europe. Don't be fooled by all the figures that the left, right and centre come out with that try to proclaim the euro would be bad for jobs. For every skilled job that disappears due to unfair trade within Europe, McDonalds creates two part-time jobs, ergo, the more we lose from having a fixed exchange rate, the more we actually gain. That is before the millions of jobs that the introduction of Euro-laws will create. We already have over seven million people employed by our own state (I think, not even the government can actually quote a figure!!), how many more would a super state of 325 million people be able to employ. We could look down the barrel of full employment for years to come. Not since the glorious days of the Soviet Union, when everyone was guaranteed a job in a launderette, a loaf of bread and two bottles of meths a day, has our economic outlook been so rosy. As for interest rates, Base rate last night was 3.75%, whilst Euribor was 2.54%. Now a rough, top of my head guess is that would allow house prices to increase by 50% overnight, so we could all go out and borrow so much more, then buy some televisions and cars from Korea, keeping television and car salesmen in jobs.
Its a wonderful circle Paddy. Vote for the euro before Brussels makes it compulsory to vote for it. Control your own economy is so passe these days. Let someone else make all the hard decisions about whether to shut down say, the North-east or Catalonia. You'll all come round eventually when we do it by stealth.
The Moron.

[dinnad]

Keep the pound - lose your job. The choice is yours.

--

Cheemag.

[gordon the moron]

Anyone wants the euro, ie Tony Blair, go and live on the continent along with 500,000 Germans who have lost their job this year. Germany is a basket case and only lower interest rates and increased government spending can cure it. However, what options do the Germans have? None. Interest rates may be set in Frankfurt but it is done by a Belgium or a Frenchman. Both who have to look at growth in Ireland and Greece and set a rate compatible with these. As for Government spending. There is no point increasing taxation as this lowers overall spending and they are not allowed to borrow any extra, which it the classic way to avoid deflation, because they themselves inserted clauses in the euro act to limit borrowing to just 3% of GNP to stop the Italians and Greeks printing money. We may be entitled to a touch of schadenfreud to see them hoist by their own petard but that will not stop what may become a real catastrophe all over Europe. The last time Europe was in a vaguely similar situation someone came along and said to the German people,'we are not being spoken to like this, paying reparations to France etc., not being allowed to get our own people working in munitions factories, we must stand up to these interfering busybodies. Ein Volk, Ein Fuhrer, Ein Euro.'
Sorry but I wish people would not start me off on this subject.
Anyway, anyone wants to join the euro you can buy a nice little starter chateau in Brittany for the price of an allotment in Taunton and there are plenty of jobs going in Brussels making sure carrots are large enough to be harvested and such like.
Bye

[Tristan]

Everytime you go through the currency exchange process, you lose money. The "buy" rate is never the same as the "sell" rate, so unless you time the currency fluctuation wave perfectly, you get swamped. Switching to a single currency will negate this, immediately increasing our profitability by up to 5%.

Also a single currency will make it more difficult for UK businesses to hide price differentials...As an example, there was a newspaper article a wee wiley ago outlining that the prices of fruits and vegetables in (I think it was) Spain had increased by 10%...what they didn't publish in the article was the actual cost of fruit/veg there, which is a great deal cheaper than here, and would have lessened the "scary euro" impact of the story...

Our government and the media hide behind the "strong pound" fallacy, ignoring the fact that if the pound was so strong, goods here would be cheaper than anywhere else, when in fact the reverse is true. Unless of course it is our outrageous taxation rates, which would also become more difficult to hide!

Just my 2p worth (45p incl VAT and P&P)

[Anonymous]

With all due respect, what are you talking about?
Within the Euro there is no such thing as a 'strong pound' there is only a weak currency.
The Euro may appear strong but that is due to factors beyond there control, ie high real interest rates because the ECB is tied by how Ireland, Greece etc are performing The dollar is being driven down, which makes no difference whatsoever to America because the vast majority of their transactions are conducted either within their country or in dollars anyway eg oil, gold virtually all commodities
Changing currency? How much currency do you exchange and then compare that to how much you spend in this country.
Anyone who looks at Germany, France, Spain and Portugals economic performance since joining the euro would have to be a purblind, over-optimistic, europhilic idiot or a member of the commission, which if I remember rightly sack their chief accountant not so long ago because she told them their practises were bordering on the illegal. Sorry my time is up but vote for the euro, (if you get the chance) at your peril!
Paddy

[Anonymous]

At last a modicum of sense has prevailed and Wim whatever his name has cut Euro interest rates. This may stop German unemployment reaching five millions before Christmas. maybe not.
However, it will do nothing to prevent Ireland's economy overheating, only add to the problem.
One size does not fit all. There are times when it would be ideal to have different interest rates in different parts of the same country. But this would be impossible without different currencies.
Norman Lamont once said in an unguarded moment that if the cost of high interest rates (to stay within the boundaries of the ERM (remember that fiasco)), was mass unemployment in the North East of England then that was the price that would have to be paid.
Now imagine say that, not about Sunderland etc., but a sovereign country such as Germany and you have the possibility of real problems. Neil Collins in todays Telegraph says "History provides no comfort when it comes to the effects of mass unemployment in Germany."
If anyone wants a single currency, go and live in a single country.