§ Sir Thomas ArnoldTo ask the Prime Minister what is his current attitude towards the introduction of the hard ecu as a common currency within the EU.
§ The Prime MinisterAlthough the United Kingdom advocated the hard ecu during the Maastricht treaty negotiations, it was eventually agreed that the route set out in the treaty would avoid the problems of the control of the money supply that a parallel currency would inevitably involve. We therefore agreed to a three-stage process in which responsibility for our monetary policy will remain firmly in national hands unless and until Parliament agrees that we should seek to join a single currency.