16 Mar 2009

Does Barroso think the UK has a euro future?

Lunch in store today with EU President Barroso.

The Portuguese politician has had a bigger impact on world politics than most of his predecessors. I’ve interviewed him before but not had this sort of an encounter.

It will be intriguing to see what he makes of the EU’s future, under siege from the disintegrating economies of the erstwhile eastern bloc – not to mention some of the more conventional “old members”.

And what of Britain? Hugely short-term advantaged by not being in the euro, so that our own dwindling currency allows outsiders to buy our goods cheap – except they aren’t buying.

I’m not alone in sensing that Gordon Brown, never very warm about either Europe or its currency, is belatedly seeing the value of cohesive international behaviour in the face of global events.

So is UK membership of the euro closer in the medium to long term, or will the union have fractured before we ever get there? In any case, has Britain’s opportunity ever to join the euro anyway now passed? Who would have us now?

Answer’s on a postcard (this blogger’s “post card”) later in the day.

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