"Who knows?"

William Hague, the foreign secretary, has raised doubts about the future of the euro, saying it was impossible to know whether the currency would collapse. The Foreign Secretary, a vociferous and long-standing critic of European monetary union, said he "hoped" that the euro would survive, but added: "Who knows?" His comments came as talks continued about the possible need to bail out debt-ridden Ireland, the latest crisis-hit eurozone member. Asked whether the euro could collapse, Mr Hague told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "Well I hope not. The Treasury has not ruled out any options for financial aid to Ireland, including the possibility of a bilateral bail-out, although that appears unlikely.
Britain would be required to guarantee up to about £6 billion of support as part of the European stability mechanism, if that option is pursued. Many Tory MPs are deeply opposed to the use of UK taxpayers' money to bail out Ireland. Earlier this week, Edward Leigh warned: "The British people want to be assured at a time when very painful cuts are being made here that good money is not being thrown after bad in driving the Irish further into the sclerotic arms of the euro which caused the problems in the first place."