Euro

Euro

The Euro is the common currency of 12 of the 15 European Union nations.

There are seven different banknotes printed on paper containing genetically modified cotton.

Ђ50, Ђ10, Ђ20, Ђ50, Ђ100, Ђ200, Ђ500

There are eight coins. One side of the coins is common to all the countries, the reverse is specific to each nation.

Approximately Ђ14.89 billion banknotes and Ђ51.629 billion coins were initially minted.

The Euro came into theoretical operation on 1st January 1999.

On 1st January 2002, 12 European Union members got rid of their own currencies and introduced the Euro as their sole currency.

Britain has yet to join the Euro and Jack Straw, the Home Secretary, has stated that the decision will almost certainly be a political one.

The Chancellor, Gordon Brown, stated that the decision will be an economic one and that Five Tests will be used to determine whether Britain joins the Euro

The Five Tests

In order for the Euro to be introduced in Britain, Gordon Brown’s ‘Five Tests’ for UK participation must be met. This is largely so, particularly the advantages to the Financial Services sector.

For

Low inflation

The prospect of sustained low-inflation under the responsibility of an independent European Central Bank should reduce long-term interest rates and stimulate sustained economic growth and competitiveness. The UK has a successful flexible labour market that would be highly effective inside a single currency area.

Arguments for a single European currency often rest finally on the hope that it will usher in permanently low inflation, which has been the expressed objective of British policy for some years. The benefits of low inflation are beyond dispute. Markets work more efficiently, the quality of savings and investment decisions improves,