Euro will benefit Britain - Byers

Successful Euro will deliver stability, says Stephen Byers

A senior government minister has given a glowing account of the benefits British industry would gain from joining the European Single Currency.

The Trade and Industry Secretary, Stephen Byers, said entry into a successful Euro would bring "currency stability" to the country.

Currency stability would be one of the benefits we would get from joining a successful Euro

Stephen Byers

His pro-Euro statement, on an issue which seems certain to be one of the main battlegrounds at the general election, appeared to take some MPs by surprise.

Mr Byers had been answering questions in the House of Commons about the impact of a climate change levy on major energy users such as Corus, which recently announced 6,000 job losses at its British steel plants.

He insisted that one of the issues causing Corus "greatest concern" was that even a minor change in the exchange rate between the pound and the Deutschmark could cost the company millions of pounds.

Byers backs the Euro

"We need to have currency stability here in the UK, which would be one of the benefits which we would get from joining a successful single European currency," he said.

The shadow trade secretary, David Heathcoat-Amory, accused Mr Byers of being "out of touch with manufacturing industry".

He said the chairman of Corus, Sir Brian Moffat, had been quoted as saying that direct and indirect taxes on business, such as rising energy costs and the climate change levy, had all eroded the company's competitiveness.

But Mr Byers said Sir Brian had made it clear in evidence to the trade and industry select committee that the climate change levy was not an issue.

He said: "That is on the record and I much rather rely on evidence given before a select committee of this House than any quotes in a national newspaper."