John Downes assesses how smoothly the changeover to the euro went in Ireland.

Irish consumers became acquainted with the euro on January 1st, 2002. For business, it was essential to plan for the changeover to the new currency well ahead of that date. A high-profile campaign overseen by the Government-backed Euro Changeover Board of Ireland helped companies prepare for a successful transition to the euro.

Aimed at ensuring that the main players - such as the Central Bank of Ireland, the banking system, and other financial institutions such as post offices, retailers, hotels and restaurants - were putting proper procedures in place, the campaign also focused on educating consumers on what the changeover would entail.

"We had people working on the project for two years in advance," says Mr Dermot Breen of Tesco, which like all businesses had to plan ahead for the introduction of the single currency. "We liaised with the Irish Business and Employers Confederation and the changeover board, which contributed to the process. There was a lot of changing of systems, and training of people to handle two currencies. We had between 25,000 and 30,000 products in every shop and the price labels on these had to be changed.

"The enormous public support and enthusiasm for the euro was amazing," he believes. "The speed of uptake and adaptation was absolutely fantastic. We knew it would be positive, but I don't think anybody would have expected that 90 per cent of transactions would be in euros within 10 days - we had expected 85 per cent by the end of January."

Mr David Croughan, chief economist with the IBEC - and one of those involved with the changeover board - agrees the introduction of the euro was, by and large, a success for Irish business.

"Business was quite enthusiastic about going into the euro," he believes. "In general, businesses are well pleased to be part of the euro, and to be part of a much more cohesive economic bloc if we had not done so, it is possible we would not have seen as much investment in the past few years."

Although the changeover itself proceeded seamlessly enough, consumer groups such as the Consumers' Association of Ireland still had concerns. These revolved primarily around whether the new currency would lead to price increases as retailers were tempted to round up their prices.

At the time, there were strong assertions by industry and the Government that no profit would be made from the changeover but this has not necessarily been the case, according to Consumers Association chief executive Mr Dermott Jewell.

"It is pretty obvious prices have gone up, certainly with regards to the service industry," he says. On the other hand, he points out that a "major positive of the euro has been the ease of movement it has allowed within Europe. People save money and time. You know the real value of your money and what you are getting, it has made it very easy to compare prices".

"The problem is that we can easily make comparisons, but so can any other member-state. It is arguable that people are looking at prices here and deciding not to come here.

"I think overall as a nation and as a part of the EU, the euro has been a good thing and will bring more benefits in the future. I still think there are a lot of teething problems that need to be ironed out."

However, not all price increases are attributable to the introduction of the euro. Other factors, such as increases in government taxes and inflation, also play a role.

Some also argue that the introduction of the euro in itself helped fuel spending, at least in the short term, as a single currency brought with it a single exchange rate and a reduction in interest rates. These had immediate consequences for an Irish economy which was already performing well, according to Mr Robbie Kelleher, head of research with Davy Stockbrokers in Dublin.

"The Irish economy received a cut in interest rates and exchange rates at a time when it was the last thing it needed," he believes. "The concern is that we get interest rates and exchange rates that are appropriate to mainland Europe, not necessarily to us all the time. While it is not currently as big an issue - the economy is not as good as it was - certainly a couple of years ago it was."

Mr Michael Crowley, an economist with Bank of Ireland Treasury and International Banking, agrees that the transition to the single currency helped create a "boom" in an economy where it was not necessarily needed.

He also stresses, however, the need to distinguish between these short-term problems and the long-term results of Ireland's participation in the euro.

"It is generally felt that our membership of a monetary union like the EMU is beneficial, bringing increased empoyment and trade," he says. "We are not long enough into the project, however. We're talking about another five years at least it will take a while to see all the benefits, such as increased employment, which it will bring."