The speculation was that either the pound would rise to an even more unacceptable level because of the blow to the credibility of the Euro, or it would fall. The prebriefings that must have taken place were well-informed, no doubt as the result of deliberate policy by the New Labour government which works hand in glove with business and finance as a matter of principle. The finance dealers who came in specially in casual dress on Monday despite it being a national holiday in Britain (something to do with Mayday?!) gave their camera shots looking relaxed to the point of boredom.
Indeed the fudge that Blair chaired, would have been informed by the fullest reports on the likely movements of the markets. All this is part of the evaluation of the new politics of new labour: how does a marxist analysis approach a government that makes opportunism an open virtue?
But the question I want to pose here to Doug and others is what is the significance for world economics of the succesful launch of the Euro? To be more specific, what will be different one year after the launch of the Euro, what five years afterwards?
(Of course I am aware that a complete answer would be in tens of thousands of words, but I would like to see some discussion. My guess is that the launch of the Euro is arguably one of the biggest geo-political shifts since the fall of the Berlin Wall, or is that just because I am a European?)
Chris Burford
London.