being detrimental to a return to sustainable economic growth, the adherence of these countries to their medium - term consolidation programmes will strengthen consumer and investor confidence. any deviation from the medium - term orientation could thus only prove counterproductive. countries without fiscal imbalances can, of course, allow automatic stabilisers to operate fully. however, there is no case for fiscal activism in any country. the only way to continue to expand the rate of non - inflationary output growth of the economy in a decisive and long - lasting manner is to deepen structural reform in the labour and goods markets. efforts have been made in this direction in many euro area countries over recent years, but there is still some way to go. in the same vein, governments should pursue determined reforms with regard to the size and structure of public expenditure and revenue, also in order to create room for further tax cuts and to absorb the fiscal costs of population ageing. together with continued wage moderation aimed at sustaining recent labour market gains, these reforms will foster employment and investment, and ultimately contribute in a decisive manner to making the euro a resounding and long - lasting success, underpinned by a stable and dynamic economy. i am confident that the importance of this moment and the need to act resolutely is well understood by policy - makers all over europe.

, of course, the banking sector. but the media has also been accompanying the changeover in a very positive, informative and supportive manner, thus helping us to convey certain messages to the citizens of the euro area as to how they can contribute to a successful operation. at the end of the day, the success of the euro cash changeover depends not only on the co - operation of all professional parties directly involved, but also on a favourable attitude and quick acceptance by the citizens. therefore, i should also like to express my gratitude to the media for their efforts. let me now mention some of the other factors which have contributed to the success of the euro cash changeover. first, in march last year the governing council of the ecb established the cash changeover co - ordination committee ( cashco ) comprising representatives from the ecb, the 12 ncbs of the euro area, the european commission and europol. the committee has overall responsibility for the co - ordination of the changeover to euro banknotes and coins from the period before 1 january 2002 until the end of february 2002. second, measures were taken to ensure an early return of national banknotes and coins. as regards the return of legacy currency coins, most national authorities reduced the work for banks during the dual circulation period either by encouraging the public to deposit hoarded coins at banks'counters early on, or through a range of charity schemes introduced in some countries. with regard to national banknotes, there was also a return of hoarded banknotes, particularly high denominations. in total, legacy currency banknotes in circulation fell during the course of the year by eur 110 billion to eur 270 billion at the end of 2001. third, a crucial factor for the success of the euro cash changeover was the decision to allow the frontloading and sub - frontloading of banknotes and coins to the banking sector and to other target groups from 1 september 2001. this four - month lead time was required in order to ensure that sufficient euro banknotes and coins were available for widespread circulation from 1 january 2002. in fact, the scale and timing of frontloading and sub - frontloading varied considerably between different countries, depending on the national changeover scenario chosen, the national infrastructure ( e. g. the extent of the central bank branch network and its role in the money supply, the storage facilities available in bank branches ) as well as the size and geography of the country. in almost all euro area countries the national authorities provided euro