§ Mr. Austin MitchellTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what obligations are imposed on the United Kingdom and what changes have to be made to British economic policy to allow the United Kingdom to qualify for monetary union and to take Her Majesty's Government to the point at which it can decide to enter monetary union or not. [1106]
§ Mrs. Angela KnightThe Council, meeting in the composition of Heads of State and Government, will decide for each member state whether it fulfils the necessary conditions for the adoption of a single currency, in accordance with the provisions of article 109j of the EC treaty and protocol No. 6 on the convergence criteria. Protocol No. 11, annexed to the EC treaty, means that the United Kingdom shall not be obliged or committed to move to the third stage of economic union without a separate decision to do so by the Government and Parliament. We will agree to take part in a single currency only if it is in our national interest to do so, given the circumstances at the time. The Government's economic policies aim to bear down on inflation and ensure sound public finances. These policies make good economic sense and are entirely consistent with the convergence criteria.