asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether there is within the public sector continuing expenditure in respect of the Outline National Changeover Plan in preparation for entry into European monetary union. [HL1198]

The third Outline National Changeover Plan (oNCP3) was published in June 2003 and provides a comprehensive statement of how the Government would manage a UK changeover. This document and other central planning documents for a possible euro changeover are available on the Treasury's euro website (www.euro.gov.uk). The Euro Preparations Unit in the Treasury focuses on maintaining these documents and a network of expert stakeholders from all sectors. Costs are met from within the Treasury's departmental expenditure limit.