Major: Britain should delay EMU entry

John Major makes his point on The World At One

The former PM discusses entry into EMU at length Duration: 8'16"

Major Abandons "Wait and See" Policy

The former Prime Minister says it is unlikely that either France or Germany will be able to meet the convergence criteria by that date, and that a "fudged" monetary union should definitely be avoided. "I don't believe they (France and Germany) could meet the criteria without fudging the figures. They should not proceed on this basis," he said.

Mr Major says he is abandoning his "negotiate and decide" or "wait and see" policy on 1999 entry because of Chancellor Kohl's attempt to revalue Germany's gold reserves, and by the surprise victory of the left in Sunday's French election.

Kenneth Clarke: Agrees with Major's stance

Kenneth Clarke, the pro-European ex-Chancellor who is currently a front runner in the race to be the new Tory leader, has echoed Mr Major's calls saying that it has becoming increasingly apparent that the government could not proceed with the single currency on a "safe and sustainable basis" in 1999: "The outcome of the French election, together with Germany's unwise attempt to revalue its gold reserves, make the case for delaying EMU even stronger" he said.

In his final month or so as Conservative leader, Mr Major will seek to commit his party to a policy of delayed entry to the EMU in an attempt to heal the rift over Europe that has been the source of so many problems for him.

However, another leadership challenger, Michael Howard, has already indicated that he would not settle for a policy of delay. The Euro-sceptic former Home Secretary has restated his position that he is opposed to the abolition of the pound "in principle as well as for practical reasons".

During the election campaign Mr Major was under constant pressure to abandon the "wait and see" policy and had to suffer the embarrassment of more than 200 Conservative candidates publishing anti-single-currency election literature. Despite his repeated please to his party to present a united front, the issue of Europe continued to divide his party and was seen by many as a significant contributor to its landslide defeat at the polls.

Mr Major said that events had vindicated his decision to secure an opt-out and that this puts the new government in a powerful negotiating position. He hopes that Tony Blair will also adopt a policy of delay.

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