§ Mr. RentonTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer which members of the European Union he currently forecasts will meet the Maastricht economic criteria in 1997. [2141]
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§ Mr. Kenneth Clarke[holding answer 4 November 1996]: An assessment of which countries meet the conditions for joining the single currency on 1 January 1999 will be made by the Council of Ministers in early 1998. At present there are considerable uncertainties surrounding this and other issues relating to the single currency.