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British opposition to euro 45perc { May 20 2003 } Original Source Link: (May no longer be active)    http://www.guardian.co.uk/euro/story/0,11306,959681,00.html http://www.guardian.co.uk/euro/story/0,11306,959681,00.html Hardcore opposition to euro at 45% peak Download the poll results (pdf) Alan Travis and Michael White Tuesday May 20, 2003 The Guardian Hardcore opposition to Britain joining the single currency has risen to 45% of all voters - the highest level yet, and threatening to close down Tony Blair's referendum options. But the poll also shows that a majority of British voters believes it is now inevitable the country will have joined the euro within 10 years. The results of this month's Guardian/ICM poll challenge the conventional wisdom in Downing Street that, once a referendum campaign on the euro got under way, it would be a case of all to play for. The ICM poll suggests that most of the "no" vote in Britain has made up its mind and only 14% of voters who say they oppose the euro say they might be open to persuasion. The poll is published after Mr Blair and Gordon Brown yesterday launched their promised series of "trilaterals" on the euro, when they discussed Britain's prospects for joining the single currency in six separate meetings with six cabinet ministers. No details of the tightly-guarded exchanges emerged from the half-hour sessions with the leader of the Commons, John Reid; the chief whip, Hilary Armstrong; Ian McCartney, Labour's new chairman; all party managers; plus three departmental big-hitters, Patricia Hewitt (trade), David Blunkett (Home Office) and Charles Clarke (education). John Prescott has been inside the debate for weeks. The remaining 14 will be seen by Thursday when the full cabinet takes stock of the Treasury's 2,000 pages of 18 economic analyses before receiving Mr Brown's assessment of his famous "five economic tests" at the weekend, then reaching a collective consen-sus on the issue for the chancellor to announce on June 9. Mr Blair is keen to seriously involve the pro-euro cabinet majority (probably 15 of the 23 members) in the decision -not least to prevent the door on euro-entry being slammed too hard at this stage. But Mr Brown will use a Confederation of British Industry dinner in London tonight to stress his pro-European credentials - provided the European Union adapts its 1980s "single trade block" mentality into an outward-looking role in the globalised economy. "The new debate about Europe's future is no longer - as it was in the 1980s - how a single trade block organises its internal markets, independent of the rest of the world, but how all of Europe, thinking globally, can be outward looking," he will say. Today's ICM poll finding that the "no camp" can count on the firm support of 45% of all voters suggests that whatever the cabinet decides next month, Mr Blair may have already left it too late to win a euro referendum campaign. The results clearly demonstrate that the "no vote" is not as soft as many commentators have suggested and that a euro referendum this time would not be a repeat of the 1975 Common Market referendum, when the campaign turned a two to one majority against into support for membership. The detailed results show that the hardcore pro-euro vote stands at only 19% of voters, with a further 9% saying they would support but might be persuaded to vote against. When the 14% "soft" no vote is added, it becomes clear that the maximum potential a pro-euro camp can hope to reach in a referendum campaign is only 42% of the electorate - dangerously below the level of hardcore anti-euro support. The news gets even bleaker for Mr Blair with the monthly ICM/Goldman Sachs tracker question on the euro showing that 62% of voters would oppose joining the single currency if there were a referendum tomorrow and only 29% would vote in favour. But the ICM survey also shows 54% of voters believe it is inevitable that the UK will join within the next 10 years. The poll results also show that despite a tabloid campaign demanding a national referendum on the proposed EU constitution, 81% say they have not heard of them. ICM interviewed a random sample of 1,000 adults aged 18 and over between May 16 and 18, 2003. Interviews were conducted across the country and the results have been weighted to the profile of all adults.

Bank of england leaves rate 4 5 in september 2005 { September 8 2005 } Bank of england raises rates first time four years Blair will take britain into euro by 2007 British bank acquires firm { November 15 2002 } British opposition to euro 45perc { May 20 2003 } British pound hits peak against dollar { June 2007 } British sterling pound is third most reserve currency Britons hate euro { July 31 2002 } Britons pile on credit card debt Dollar drops to 26 year low vs pound { June 2007 } Imf warns britain to curb public spending { December 19 2003 } Secrets of the bank of england revealed Sterling and gold surged highest levels decade { January 6 2004 } Files Listed: 13

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