Can anybody now tell me any good reason for not joining the euro?

Holidaymakers used to cheap European shopping sprees – and people planning Christmas and New Year skiing trips – have been watching in horror this week as sterling dropped like the proverbial stone.

So isn’t it about time we in the UK had the convenience of the euro, saving us all the bother of having to visit the bureau de change every time we want to nip to France and then having to go back when we get home – usually being charged for the privilege.

Yesterday, after a series of record plunges, the pound reached its lowest level against the euro in the nine-year history of the single currency.

Last December, £1 bought 1.40 euros. It is now considered likely that sterling will slump below parity with the euro and many tourists are already facing a one-to-one rate when high street charges and commission are taken into account.

Surely that is enough to say: Yep. it’s time to join in.

The anti-euro argument is usually about tradition, but there are some traditions which are largely pointless. Do I care if I have Her Maj smirking at me every time I part with some of my hard earned cash? No. I do not. If
anything it only serves to remind me she’s got a lot more wonga than I have. She seems to have aged well on her portrait though!

This slightly pathetic desire to hold on to our own currency borders on the ridiculous. Are we that small-minded that we can’t see ourselves as part of a wider community?

This is the kind of “us and them” thinking that has been known to start pointless conflicts.

Presumably those making the “tradition” argument would be happier with we were still on pounds, shillings and pence.

Traditionally we lived in caves – but this is not the stone age.

Never before has the world been a more global village. The state of the world economy is proof of that. It used to be said that if America sneezed, the UK caught a cold. These days, if any part of the world gets the snuffles the rest of the planet is suddenly reaching for the Lemsip.

Yes, we need to keep our national identity. It’s what makes the world an interesting place to live. but the pieces of paper and bits of metal in your pocket have nothing to do with who you are, or where you come from.

Having one currency, however, might just help out with where you’re going…