IT'S wrong to 'gloat' but I confess to enjoying the fact that nobody these days seriously claims that the euro is a 'weak' currency.

Two years ago it was a different story.

In these columns I was having a hard time defending the euro against hostile letter writers.

It's fall in value proved a failure, they claimed.

I could only argue that currencies should be looked at in the long term.

As I write the value of the euro is close to that of the dollar having risen by 17 per cent.

Against the pound it is worth between 64p and 65p, not far off the level which the CBI says is needed for Britain to join the common currency.

The Eurosceptics may have enjoyed their brief period of gloating but we have paid a high price for not being in the euro.

Investment in British business is at a four year low and inward investment has fallen sharply, over the past three years.

To survive, British manufacturers have had to cut their margins and lose nearly 500,000 jobs.

Meanwhile their continental competitors have made good profits and used the money to invest in the latest technology.

The productivity gap has widened and left us further behind.

We now have a more level playing field and businesses here should find it easier to export.

By joining the common currency we can put an end to many worries about exchange rate differences.

Manufacturers will be able to plan for the future with greater confidence.

Chris Davies

North West MEP

Liberal Democrats