LONDON, April 14 - Britain's Treasury said on Monday it would not give a "running commentary" on progress in assessing the government's five key tests on whether the country should join the euro. It was reacting to media speculation that the assessment of the tests has already been decided, including an article in one Sunday newspaper saying there would be no referendum this year, and would be published in the next few weeks. "In light of a period of media and wider speculation in the last week it would not be responsible to give a running commentary on the five economic tests," a Treasury spokesman said. "Government policy remains as set out by the Chancellor in October 1997. The assessment of the five tests will be published by the first week of June as the Chancellor said in the budget statement last week," the spokesman added.
This week's Sunday Telegraph quoted a "senior minister" which declared that Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown had already passed a report to Prime Minister Tony Blair saying now was not the right time for Britain to join the euro. That followed days of speculation among market analysts and political strategists that Brown might use last Wednesday's budget speech as an opportunity to declare, or at least hint, that the five tests were not yet met but leave the door open for a reassessment in the future. Gordon Brown made no clear statement on the euro in the budget but pledged to deliver his assessment of the economic case for euro entry by the first week of June. The Treasury official's comment also followed remarks over the weekend by Blair's close ally and confidant Peter Mandelson, who said the Prime Minister still wants to hold a referendum on joining Europe's single currency before the next election.
Mandelson signalled, however, that a vote was more likely next year than this. The Labour government is committed in principle to euro entry subject to the five economic tests and a referendum. It has long promised to complete the assessment of those tests by June. A poll by ICM for the anti-euro "No" campaign showed on Sunday that of more than 1,000 Britons asked how they would vote today, 68 percent would opt to keep the pound and only 23 percent would favour the euro.//