Euro 'no' would harm UK: Cook
BRITAIN will find it increasingly difficult to maintain a leading role in Europe the longer it stays outside the single currency, Leader of the Commons Robin Cook warned on Sunday.
Cook, seen as one of the leading supporters of the euro in the Cabinet, said the Government would have to weigh up the economic and the political implications when deciding whether to recommend joining.
?On the political side it is clear that we are gaining a lot from the leading role we have in Europe,‘ he said. ?If we want to continue with that powerful leading role within the European Union it is going to be more challenging to do that if we are outside the inner club.‘
While at pains to stress that the Government's policy had not changed and that the five economic tests must be met before a referendum was called, he said: ?We believe in principle that Britain could be better off inside the euro.‘
Earlier, Europe Minister Peter Hain said he believed most people wanted the Government to act ?cautiously and hard-headedly in their interests‘ over the issue.
Opinion polls at the weekend presented a mixed picture. The Sunday Telegraph and News of the World reported that Britons were largely against joining the single currency while the Sunday Times found the majority in favour.
According to an ICM poll commissioned by the News of the World, one in three (31%) voters would vote to join the euro compared with 56% who would vote no. Another 12% said they remain undecided.
A poll reported in the Sunday Telegraph, conducted by ICM for the No Campaign, which opposes British membership, found nearly three-quarters (73%) of Britons oppose joining the single currency. One in five (21%) said Britain should join.
But a survey carried out on behalf of the Sunday Times showed that British voters are warming towards the euro. The poll conducted by YouGov Opinion Research revealed that 52% of people want to join the euro with only 25% saying they believed Britain should never join.
Meanwhile, the Observer reported that the leader of Britain‘s second biggest union, Amicus, believes the Government‘s economic conditions have already been met. And the Sunday times said the City expects a referendum in 2004, quoting a survey by financial research company Ideaglobal.com.
