between the ‘ in ’ and the ‘ out ’ scenario will be that notes and coins would not be introduced in this country if we are an ‘ out ’, so that for most of us life would go on very much as normal. mr. chairman, i have dwelt on the practical side of monetary union very briefly this evening, because i fear that the practicalities may be overlooked in the passion of the debate about the principle. but in my youth - which seems a very long time ago now - i was a boy scout, brought up with the motto “ be prepared ”. it is vital in this context that we are indeed prepared, whatever the outcome, and the bank is determined to do all that we can to ensure that we are. and provided we have properly prepared ourselves i do not believe that monetary union need hold great terrors for this country whichever way the decision goes when the time comes. if it is decided that emu is a safe club for the uk to join then i think this country is as well placed as any to live with its disciplines. if on the other hand, we remain on the outside but continue to behave responsibly - in our national interest, but also as a member of the eu - then i think the fears for inward investment, or for the future of the financial services industry in this country, will prove to be exaggerated. the economic reality is that businesses - whether financial or non - financial - will expand their activities in this country so long as it is profitable for them to do so. they would be answerable to their shareholders if they behaved in any other way. the key to economic prosperity in this country, mr. chairman, lies in continued macro - economic discipline in a context of structural, supply - side, flexibility, and that is true regardless of monetary union. provided - in or out - we persist in that, then we can continue to deliver a business climate of steady growth with low inflation for as far ahead as we can see. that is the best possible prospect for the bankers here this evening - and the best possible prospect for their customers.

euros from an early stage, although they would certainly still need to transact most of their local business in national currencies for some considerable period. on the other hand, we would not expect there to be much demand for banking facilities denominated in euros either for individuals or for the vast majority of smaller local businesses much before euro banknotes and coins become available in late 2001 or early 2002. at that point, the conversion of retail facilities into euros might proceed quite rapidly during the subsequent six - month period when national currency notes and coin are to be withdrawn - but again the principle of no compulsion and no prohibition would apply. retail conversion is of course a massive undertaking. but the timetable does at least provide some 4 - 5 years from now for people to prepare. the bottom line in all this is that if emu goes ahead on time and whether the uk is in or out, the impact on your business will depend very much upon the nature of the business you are in. up to now, we at the bank have concentrated mainly on ensuring that the banking system and the wholesale financial markets will be ready to operate in euros from day 1, because they will be affected first, and they will be affected whether or not the uk is a part of the “ first wave ”. but we are conscious of the developing thirst for information from the rest of the business community. with this in mind, we have co - operated with the cbi and the british chambers of commerce in organising regional workshops - including one to be held here in liverpool on 23 april. we are participating too in seminars organised by the forum of private business - and i am sure that if you are interested you will be able to prevail upon stan mendham, who i am delighted to see here this evening, to organise such a seminar here too! if you are really lucky, 007 might even provide you with a short bank of england guide : “ introduction of the euro - what does it mean for business? ” which, for reasons that i can ’ t quite understand, in this case comes absolutely free. the picture is rather different if the uk were to opt out of monetary union - at least for the time being. in that case the euro will be a foreign currency in the uk, and businesses, where appropriate, will need to cope with it from the 1 january 1999 just as they cope now with transactions and contracts denominated in deutschemarks, dollars, yen and the like. but the huge difference