AFTER three weeks of confusion a jittery City and a perplexed country was today being told where the government stands on the single European currency.

But though clarity may be craved by the financial markets, Chancellor Gordon Brown's attempts this afternoon to clear away uncertainty are not so well suited to the government's requirements.

For the decision on whether Britain should join the single currency is the toughest any government has faced for decades.

Politically, the government needs the country's endorsement, not just the City's, for any move to join up.

It is not just exchange rates, interest charges, or jobs and prosperity that are the influences, but national sovereignty and sentimental attachment to the pound that are the public's opinion fixers.

Thus today as Mr Brown shifts the "wait and see" policy to one of actively preparing to join, but staying out long enough to see how it goes, the government is trying to have the best of both worlds.

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