ONCE more I feel that I should endeavour to educate Julian Thake.

Maybe, at the moment, this country occupies fourth position in the World Economy League. Well done, Tony Blair!

The fact remains that the really large American and Japanese companies would prefer the UK to be a "euro" country.

So would the majority of the CBI and the TUC, ever mindful of the job situation, would favour British membership of the euro as well.

Of course, people in India and China have far lower expectations from life than people in Britain. On the world scene, such low expectations are, of course, a source of strength to the Indian and Chinese governments.

Nevertheless, with their huge populations, both these countries, in little more than a decade, will become more attractive markets for global entrepreneurs than a small entity such as the UK.

Therefore Britain needs to have a very close relationship with the other 14 smaller EU states.

However, in any case, if we do not enter the euro system, the UK will break up. The nationalists in Scotland, Wales and the Six Counties favour Europe and would take steps to enter the euro of their own accord.

Thus England would lose the benefits of North Sea oil and our present position as a permanent member of the security council.

In fact, England would soon become a mere dependency on the USA.

D E MARGRETT,

Worcester