Minister for Finance publishes Euro Changeover (Amounts) Bill, 2001 Mr Charlie McCreevy TD, Minister for Finance, today published the Euro Changeover (Amounts) Bill, 2001. The Bill will, in necessary cases replace IR£ amounts that are set down in law with convenient amounts in euro, with effect from 1 January 2002. (Tax etc. law will be dealt with separately - see below). The amounts being replaced relate to certain fees, charges etc. levied by Government Departments or bodies, or to certain thresholds, where the amounts are or may be paid in cash or need to be easily remembered. The Bill provides that the fee etc. amounts affected will from 1 January 2002 be reduced to the nearest convenient euro amount below the exact equivalent of the current IR£ amounts, so as to favour the citizen. The threshold amounts will be increased to the nearest convenient euro amounts above the exact equivalent, again so as to favour the citizen. The background to the Bill is that under EU Regulation 974/98, IR£ money amounts in law at end-2001are from then on to read as money amounts in euro at the conversion rate (1 euro = £0.787564). In other words, the general principle is that the changeover to the euro should be as neutral as possible - ie. while the currency in which amounts are expressed will change, their value should not.    Obviously, however, money amounts produced by the conversion will not be smooth amounts in euro (eg. £100 will convert, with rounding to 126.97 euro). In many cases this will not matter, but in others it will, for example in some cases where amounts are paid in cash. Accordingly, the Bill deals with cases where a convenient euro amount has been identified as necessary, but makes only the minimum change necessary to achieve such an amount. The Bill does not deal with money amounts in the tax or social welfare codes, or in certain other major codes, eg. road tax: these will be dealt with, separately, in legislation from the relevant Departments. In the case of the tax and social welfare codes, the Finance Bill, 2001 and the Social Welfare Bill, 2001 will contain the necessary provisions. Launching the Bill today, the Minister for Finance recalled that "both the Programme for Prosperity and Fairness and the Cash Changeover Plan for 2002 make it clear that the changeover to the euro should be carried out fairly and with no advantage being sought from the changeover. The Government is committed to that principle. Indeed, today's Bill goes further, because in the cases it deals with i.e. where a change to a convenient amount in euro is necessary, the Bill will make the change in favour of the citizen. The Bill also marks an important further step in the Government's preparations for the changeover to the euro", the Minister said.   End