The Conflict

From March 1, 2002, forward, 12 European countries—Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Holland, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Portugal, and Spain—are to have one currency, the euro. The United Kingdom has never made the decision to abandon its own currency, the pound sterling, for the euro. Some within the voting population question the way the European Union is developing, what political union could mean to the national sovereignty of the member states, and how common policies across the European Union covering agriculture, defense, competition, and social policy will affect the UK. But for the most part, the question of the euro has just been repeatedly deferred, and along with it, the possible advantages in trade and foreign relations.

Political

• After years of the "little Englander...