British Trade and Industry Secretary Patricia Hewitt said today she had told representatives of a major Japanese company this week that the government's policy on membership of the euro was unchanged.
"As I said to Toyota yesterday, the government's position on the euro hasn't changed: commitment in principle to joining a successful single currency, commitment also to assessing on the basis of the five economic tests whether joining would be in our long-term interests," she said at an event to announce record foreign investment figures for Britain.A Trade and Industry Department spokeswoman said Ms Hewitt was referring to a visit to a Toyota Motor Corp plant in southern England on yesterday.
Pro-euro campaigners have said that Britain's continued success in attracting foreign investment rests largely on the assumption by most investors that Prime Minister Tony Blair will eventually lead Britain into the euro.
But Ms Hewitt said foreign investors were just as concerned about other factors such as macroeconomic stability, the skills of the workforce and the country's science and technology base.
"The question of membership of the single currency is only one factor businesses take into account when considering where to locate," she said.