The Maastricht Treaty provided the blueprint for achieving Economic and Monetary Union EMU as a further stage in the process of political and economic integration of the European Union. In order to be eligible to participate in EMU, Member states were required to attain a high degree of sustainable convergence. This was to achieve the criteria established in the treaty. This criteria was firstly examined on eleven nations in Europe in early 1997, and lastly examined in early January 1999. None of these eleven countries complied in early 1997, but on the 1st January 1999 all eleven countries complied with...
dominant place in the media over the last year. Although data shows that the Euro has not had quite the effect as it was expected to be, it has only been in operation for just over three years. Most of the benefits of the Euro are expected to show in the longer term, and not the short term. The UK is keen to maintain her independence, and probably the key concern about joining the Euro for the UK is that its ability to set its own interest rates will be lost and therefore control its own monetary policy.