A packed attendance at a European Movement conference in London on 10 January debated the experience of 10 years of the euro and what it means for Britain.
 
Graham Bishop, a leading commentator on financial issues (you can find more about him at www.grahambishop.com) , opened the conference with a discussion of the economic issues.  He was particularly concerned that the British government’s economic strategy outside the euro had made the financial crisis worse and that escaping from recession would be much harder unless Britain were to join the euro now.
 
Former MEP and City banker John Stevens then spoke about the political significance of the financial crisis engulfing the world.  It was a challenge to the Anglo-Saxon model of capitalism, he said, with countries such as China and India much less severely affected.  To restore prosperity, it was necessary to cement the advantages of the free market system, which meant recognising the advantages of sharing a common currency.
 
An updated version of the Policy briefing by Ben Patterson was also published at the conference, “The euro – success or failure”, which is available on the European Movement UK website – www.euromove.org.uk.