I don't want to argue the left/right issue, because it's not important at the moment. However...

Isn't that what Labour did when they came to power, and which now every mainstream political party admits was a very good idea? Yes, but Gordon Brown is quite capable of taking back control of interest-rates from the MPC if it suits his purpose. There is no escape clause from the common currency, as far as I understand it.

London and Manchester would probably like different interest rates too. Should we have a different currency for each city? So you understand that argument, anyway. If a single interest-rate for London & Manchester is a problem, why worsen the situation by insisting on the same rate from Helsinki to Madrid, Dublin to Berlin?