The Expressway to Yr Skull

THE SINGLE SUPERCURRENCY

The Euro - isn't it pretty? Right now, the single European currency is the hot political issue, at least for politicians. The general public, by in large, have either already made their mind up, or are still actually waiting to hear what the arguments for and against it are. Unfortunately, the government and the opposition both seem to be taking pains not to mention the debate until now, in case it might give the impression their party is divided. Nobody like a schism, though personally I'd prefer to know what they think. Right now I have very little idea. In fact I probably know more about the main figures' choice of underwear than I do about their positions on the Euro. Apparently, it's a big secret. If we're lucky, the government who work for us might generously grant us the holy privilege of a referendum, providing it's first made sure we have no idea what the hell it's all about.

Whether or not you believe in the Euro is based solely on political reasons. Economically the argument is pretty weak, as in general giving up control of your own interest rate isn't something which helps your nation. It's the kind of thing banana republics do, when they suddenly find that twenty thousand million of their own currency now buys them a can of coke and a Snickers. They join the US dollar, or another neighbouring nation's currency. Generally they do fairly well out of this, but that's not hard in countries where previously they'd need to buy a donkey just to help carry their lunch money to work.

Let's Get 'Em! Britain isn't quite at this stage yet, nor are we likely to be, ever. Another reason why their is no major economic argument is because Britain isn't France, and it isn't Germany. We have close ties with a vast Commonwealth: major links with the U.S., India, South East Asia and Australasia that other European countries don't have. We're not a European state in the way that France or Germany are; nor are we a self-contained entity like Denmark is, either. While, for France, joining the Euro only serves to put the final cap on an economic policy which has existed for many years, for Britain joining the Euro would mark a dividing point in our economics; we'd be choosing to put our economic interest in the greater European superstate, instead of the centralised model which we've followed for many years. Instead of Britain as a trading nation, we'd be thinking more in terms of Europe as a trading state.

That's why the argument is political, not economic. Because there is no other nation like Britain (even geographically, we're radically different), we can't say whether joining the Euro would be in our economic interest. Certainly there are areas where we can say it would be an improvement, specifically manufacturing and links with other European companies which have bases in the UK. But manufacturing is no longer what drives the economy. The argument is political because it's based on our own views of a European superstate; and there's no point in kidding ourselves that that isn't what the Euro would eventually lead to. If we join the Euro, we're making a political and even social decision about how we relate to the rest of our continent; decisions about immigration, foreign policy and defence will become European decisions.

It's going to be THIS big! Why I'm unusual is that while I acknowledge that the Euro would lead to a superstate, I think this is a brilliant idea. In fact, I think it's a super idea. That's why it's called a super-state. Most pro-Euro people try to gloss over this aspect as much as possible, and talk about 'greater integration' instead of absorption into a single E.U. mass. That's what I want to see. I want to see some kind of largely ceremonial, but well-known, figure elected as President of the United States of Europe (we'll have to think of a better name for it). I'm thinking Sir Ian McKellen. I want to see the world be guided by the continent where democracy, republicanism and socialism were created and first implemented. I want to see language barriers broken down as someone finally teaches the Italians to speak bloody English. I want to see people realise that being a European doesn't stop them from being English any more than being British does. But mostly, I want to piss off America. Which seems like a reasonable attitude to me.