Subject: Welcomed the chancellor's suggestion that he would take action to ensure convergence and flexibility.

From: "Osmund Drake" <[email-masked]>
Date: Sat, 14 Apr 2007 10:12:01 +0200

"This whole exercise has been an exercise in deceit," Mr Howard told MPs.
The debate goes way beyond party lines, splitting  political parties and raising passions in a way few others do. After a few days of the retail marathon Singapore provides for visitors, relaxing at the bird park can be just the ticket.
What does this mean for the pound in my pocket? These costs, economist Robin Marris said, would be the result of lost investment and lost trade. One example of the "gloss" Mr Brown had tried to put on his statement was that not a single UK region is strongly associated with the European economic cycle. In an interview with the Financial Times, Mr Hain acknowledges that Dr Kelly's death has dominated the political agenda recently.
"In their zeal to bounce Britain into the euro, they are willing to place at risk Labour seats and votes. The chancellor's five economic tests, on which he will assess whether Britain is ready to join the single currency, could be interpreted in "almost any direction", said Mr Duncan Smith.
One of the five tests has been met, says Mr Brown: euro membership would help the City. Mr Brown says Britain and the eurozone are out of kilter.
He argued that "no amount" of joint press conferences staged by the prime minister and chancellor would convince the British people they were united on the euro. "The government are using sleight of hand to hide a euro referendum fix. The Tories are publishing a dossier detailing the "grave dangers" of euro membership "glossed over" by Mr Brown, but contained in the Treasury's 18 studies on the issue. The Lib Dem spokesman said the chancellor had sounded supportive of the euro during his last major euro statement, back in 1997.
) It can be decorative because of the colors and layers it can have. He said the convergence test on bringing the UK economy more into line with the eurozone had not been met because of two risks for Britain, from housing and from inflation.
Certainly, the economic gap between Britain and Europe has narrowed in the past few years, as Mr Brown himself admits.