Papers splash out on euros

It's spend, spend, spend among journalists on Wednesday - reporters have been busy obtaining and spending euros in order to carry out a consumer test.

The Financial Times appears to have gone to the greatest lengths.

Its reporter flew 1,500 miles from Helsinki to a small town in Greece, where he successfully spent his Finnish euros.

A small triumph for the currency, says the paper.

The Daily Telegraph reporter hit the road, driving to Luxembourg to buy a cup of coffee in every country visited along the way.

But most stayed close to home, where they baffled some shop assistants with the new money and found others happy to accept it.

The Mirror claims to have made the first cash purchase in euros in the UK - a drink bought on the stroke of midnight.

"One small cup of coffee, one giant leap for Britain" is the headline.

The Sun takes a dimmer view and warns of Euro rip-offs by comparing prices when using the single currency.

The Sun itself, normally 30 pence, cost its reporter the equivalent of £1.26 in euros.

The problem, it seems, is the unfavourable exchange rate used by shops and, as The Independent reveals, the handling charge of up to eight per cent.

Hain 'apocalyptic'

The comments on the single currency by the Europe minister, Peter Hain to BBC's Radio 4 on Tuesday excite much comment.

Mr Hain said that he doubted whether it was possible indefinitely to run an economy where both the pound and the euro were legal tender.

The headline writers interpret this in their own ways.

"Euro 'inevitable' for UK" says The Guardian, while "The pound is doomed" says the Daily Star.

The Daily Mail describes Mr Hain's remark as "an apocalyptic New Year message".

Blair mission

All the papers report Tony Blair's planned visit to India and Pakistan.

Downing Street had been trying to keep the trip quiet, the Daily Telegraph says, but the Pakistani government announced the details on Tuesday.

The Guardian is sceptical about the value of high-profile flying visits - what it calls "Tony Blair's pyjama sleepovers".

But The Times thinks the prime minister's voice will carry weight.

The hectic travelling may grate with voters at home, it says, but it has boosted his standing overseas.

'Rail closures'

The Independent reports that hundreds of local rail services are facing closure, as part of a fundamental review.

The story is based on quotes from an unnamed source at the Strategic Rail Authority, who is convinced that local stopping trains will be sacrificed to improve express and freight services.

Towards the end of the report, however, an authority spokesman insists that this is not its intention.

Classroom break

The Guardian carries an interview with Education Secretary Estelle Morris, who backs a guarantee for teachers of time away from their pupils.

Ms Morris says staff should use this time to prepare lessons individually tailored for almost every child.