I realize this may be a stupid question but I was just wondering. I found a 2009 Britain 1 penny in a roll of nickels today. I was under the impression that all of Europe including the UK had switched over to Euros. Just figured I'd ask if these were special or if they still make the old type of money for Britain. Thanks, -Tyler
Unfortunately, this isn't true. Britain is part of the EU but it isn't part of the eurozone. We still use pounds and (new) pence....
Feels like it, right. But the UK is one of the two EU member states which only agreed to the Maastricht Treaty (1992) after they got an opt-out clause. So the UK and Denmark stay out of the euro area while the other member states will (at least in theory) some day join the currency union. Christian
If memory serves, the Euro states are Austria Germany Spain Portugal France Belgium Luxembourg Greece Ireland Finland Netherlands Italy Malta Slovenia Slovakia Cyprus Also, both San Marino and the Vatican, while not officially part of the Euro zone, issue Euro coins for collectors. Euros circulate in most of the postage stamp-sized countries. Denmark and the UK are eligible but have opted out; Sweden chooses not to try to meet the requirements; Switzerland is strictly neutral and wants no part of the EU or any such arrangement; and pretty much everyone else west of Russia is trying to meet the requirements, which generally boil down to having a stable economy.
The list looks good. Estonia could be the next euro country (Jan-2011), but the final decision will be made later this year. By the way, while Denmark did indeed opt out, the euro-krone exchange rate is almost fixed (with a marginal fluctuation band). The three non-EU countries that issue euro coins are Monaco, San Marino, and Vatican. SM and now VA too issue circulation coins, MC will probably have to do that as well ... Christian
