Britain's Chancellor of the Exchequer, Mr Gordon Brown said this morning that he was sticking with a June deadline for deciding whether Britain should drop the pound and adopt the euro.
Speaking on BBC television, Mr Brown described as "not correct" a newspaper report claiming that he had privately decided that Britain should not adopt the single European currency for possibly several years.
Mr Brown said 18 separate studies were underway to pave the way for an assessment of the so-called "five economic tests" to determine if the euro would be good for Britain and its economy.
"The assessment will follow the studies, and that of course will happen later - and of course we have until June to make the final decisions," the chancellor said.
"It will be done by June, as we've said all along," he said.
He added: "I don't think people should underestimate the rigour and the comprehensive nature of the work. We will publish all the studies," he said.
"People will see for themselves. We've looked at trade, the effect on the housing market, on business investment, the capital markets, the flexibility of the European economy and the British economy."
Mr Brown also said that he would be publishing a policy paper on European economic reform in the coming days that would stress "far greater flexibility in the European economy."
AFP