Heavyweights rush to claim credit for ‘new chapter’ in Europe’s history

Date: 10/01/02

By Martin Banks

THE EU elder statesmen who paved the way for the euro have heralded its launch as the start of a new chapter in the continent's history.

Former European Commission presidents Jacques Delors and Roy Jenkins, along with ex-German Chancellor Helmut Kohl, hailed the introduction of notes and coins as a great day for Europe.

The three political heavyweights who, with the late former French president Francois Mitterrand, were the prime architects of the euro, all predict that it will bring greater integration.

Some 14.5 billion notes and 56 billion coins will have been introduced across the eurozone by the end of February.

On the eve of E-Day some politicians were still expressing fears that a 'one-size-fits-all' interest rate policy may not suit all the euro states, but the public reaction to the launch has been overwhelmingly positive with millions having already swapped their old currencies for the new.

EU leaders - most of whom were pleasantly surprised by the excitement surrounding the launch - now hope this enthusiasm will translate into a new, more positive mood towards the Union.

Already the signs are encouraging, with Swedish Prime Minister Göran Persson strongly hinting that he may now hold a referendum on the euro this year.

There have been similar calls for an early vote on the issue in the UK, while Danish Foreign Minister Per Stig Moller declared his country could hold a referendum on joining before its Scandinavian neighbour.

The only black spot on the launch came in Italy, where strongly pro-euro Foreign Minister Renato Ruggiero resigned last Saturday after three fellow ministers publicly derided the euro.

The move prompted Mario Monti, the EU competition commissioner, to warn Italian premier Silvio Berlusconi not to turn his back on Europe.

But the row in Rome was essentially a side-show amid the meticulously-planned biggest monetary changeover in history.

That such a huge logistical operation has come off so extraordinarily well, however, owes as much to the past generation of European leaders than the present.

For Kohl and Delors in particular, the euro is a rare example of the triumph of political mind over matter.

The French former Commission chief said: 'It's a good start and very encouraging for the future. We have to be pleased with the public response.'

Delors warned, however, that the euro has to be given a chance to establish itself on the international currency markets.

'The monetary and economic union does not yet stand up completely on its two legs. The monetary leg is doing well, but the economic leg is still imperfect.'

Kohl, meanwhile, said he hoped the new currency would contribute to the forging of a common identity in Europe.

And, in language not normally associated with the pragmatic German, he said the moment when people in Europe were finally able to physically handle euro notes and coins for the first time was one of 'the most beautiful hours' of his life.

He predicted that the UK will introduce the euro within five years and said the currency's launch paved the way for the 'irreversible' political integration of Europe.

Kohl also revealed that he had been ready to leave office at the end of 1996 but decided to stay to help pave the way for the euro.

'Had I left, there would for sure not have been any euro,' Kohl claimed, because the vast majority of Germans were not in favour of ditching the mark at the time.

Kohl also said he believes the euro will lead to closer unity.

He said: 'The euro is not only a means of payment but a piece of European integration.'

For British Liberal peer Roy Jenkins, European Commission president from 1977-81, the introduction of the euro was a 'great' event whose launch passed off, surprisingly, without any great opposition.

In an interview with the UK's Independent newspaper, he said: 'Although I am a firm partisan of the euro, I expected the changeover to be accompanied by more squeals of pigs being led to the market than now seems likely.'

He added: 'It is significant that German opposition seems to have largely died down. If a country had a reason to be proud of its currency in the second half of the 20th century it was Germany.'

Jenkins predicts there will be a referendum on the euro in the UK in 2003 and that Britons will, like the Germans, be won over.

He said: 'If and when the referendum comes, the slogan I would recommend to the 'yes' campaign is: 'Why do you want to stay with rip-off sterling?''

Other EU and world leaders and politicians underscored the message as they too welcomed the new currency.

Costas Simitis, the Greek prime minister, whose country, with Finland, was the first to convert to the euro, one hour ahead of the other states, said: 'This is a milestone in Greek history. Now we are part of a united Europe.'

The UN secretary-general, Kofi Annan, hailed the 'political act of unity and integration' brought about by the euro.

Belgium's finance minister, Didier Reynders, was among the first Belgians to spend euros.

Reynders withdrew €150 from a branch of Fortis bank and spent some of it on a glass of beer. He said: 'What's needed now is for minds to get used to abandoning the national currency as quickly as possible.'

MEP Christa Randzio-Plath, who is chairwoman of the economic and monetary committee, said: 'The changeover was a total success and that is the most fitting answer to those who had always doubted the emergence of a single currency in Europe.

'Today, they are completely isolated and have lost all credibility, not only in the eurozone area but also in the three countries which have not adopted the euro.'

Another MEP, Jules Maaten, rapporteur for euro changeover issues, was upbeat too.

Maaten said: 'The stakes were high and the European community brilliantly passed this test.'

And the psychological effects of the changeover may encourage a huge shopping spree across Europe, according to Bundesbank president Ernst Welteke.

'You think everything is half the price, so you tend to want to spend more money,' he said.

However, consumer groups warned that their fears of price hikes in the wake of the changeover had been realised in many cases.

The EU elder statesmen who paved the way for the euro have heralded its launch as the start of a new chapter in the continent's history. Former European Commission presidents Jacques Delors and Roy Jenkins, along with ex-German Chancellor Helmut Kohl, hailed the introduction of notes and coins as a great day for Europe.

http://ec.europa.eu/comm/economy_finance/euro/our_currency_en.htm http://ec.europa.eu/comm/economy_finance/euro/our_currency_en.htm

---