The Bank of England
Eddie George, the governor of the bank, has been making speeches questioning the wisdom of proceeding with the euro for a couple of years. He has raised serious economic points. But one cannot help wondering whether Mr. George's views are coloured by a disinclination to see the Bank of England relegated to the status of a branch office of the European central bank. This would be all the more galling since his job has become a lot more interesting, following the government's decision to hand the Bank control of interest rates.

The Treasury
For the Treasury , joining the euro would pose no direct threat to jealously-guarded powers. While the Bank would lose the power to set interest rates, the Treasury would not lose the power to set or collect taxes- at least not immediately.

The Unions
The days when Britain's trade unions saw the European Union as a capitalist plot are long gone. After the Thatcherite assault on the unions, the labour movement looked longingly to "social Europe" as a means of regaining lost powers. And indeed the Blair government's decision to sign Europe's social chapter was an important gain for the unions. Some British unions are beginning to suspect that European style works- councils might undercut their traditional role. But for the moment the unions remain firmly pro-Europe and pro-euro.

Big Business
You might suspect that anything the unions favoured, big business would oppose. Not so. The Confederation of British Industry (CBI) the largest grouping of basses, is basically in favour of Britain signing up to the euro. Rather than trying to accumulate power, like the unions, CBI members are accommodating themselves to where power already lies. According to the Department of Trade and Industry , some 70% of legislation affecting British business now emanates from Brussels. The CBI fears anything that might isolate Britain in Europe.

The City
For every voice expressing anxiety about the City's position if Britain stays out of the euro, there is another expressing supreme confidence that all will be well. That is partly because the City already does a huge amount of business that has nothing to do with sterling. For example; most of the more than $400 billion that changes hands daily on the London foreign-exchange markets IS either dollar, yen or Deutschmark business.

The Celtic Fringe
Some of the most ardent pro-Europeans are to be found in the ranks of Scottish nationalists. The existence of the European Union allows the Nats to argue that an independent Scotland will not become a hopelessly isolated northern outpost. Instead they imagine a thriving statelet with a larger Europe. According to this view, devolution and eventual independence for Scotland are of a piece with the creation of a federal Europe.

The English Establishment
Scottish nationalists favour Eurofederalism because it disperses power from London; many members of the English establishment, particularly on the right of the Tory party, fear it for exactly the same reason. At present, if a chap goes to the right schools and universities, and passes the right exams, he has a good shot at getting an interesting and well-rewarded job pulling on the levers of power in Britain. It is disconcerting to realise that, as power drifts to Brussels, the levers do not exert as much force as they once did. And when you are certain that you know your way around the nooks and crannies of the British establishment, how tiresome to have to learn a new and complicated game in Brussels.

Rupert Murdoch
The opposition of Rupert Murdoch to the euro is arguably the single most important fact in Britain's debate. The Blair government has a deep fear of the country's best- selling paper -the rabidly anti-euro and Murdoch-owned Sun. But what has Mr. Murdoch got against the euro? Brussels-bashing has always made good copy for his papers. But more seriously, the coming of the euro is part of a process involving the centralisation of economic power and decision-making in pan-European bodies. And if you were a media magnate with global interests, would you want to see the rise of an increasingly powerful pan-European regulator, with uncongenial ideas about "local content" requirement and cross-media ownership?

On the other hand, Mr. Murdoch's opposition to the euro may not be immutable. European regulators already have the ability to do Mr. Murdoch's business interests serious damage, and are holding back his plans for Sky TV in Europe. If Mr. Murdoch believed that changing his line on the euro would help him with the regulators, he might swiftly become more accommodating. After all, he is famously eager to get on with the Chinese Communist Party.