Britain says euro not on agenda for economic talks

The leaders of Britain, France and the European Commission will not discuss British entry into the euro zone when they meet next week, a British official said on Friday.

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, French President Nicolas Sarkozy and European Commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso will meet business leaders and economists in London on Monday to discuss how to coordinate the response to the financial crisis.

"We are certainly not anticipating any discussion of the euro, particularly in relation to British membership of the euro," Brown's spokesman told reporters.

Barroso said earlier this week that "people who count" in Britain were thinking about joining the single currency, prompting a flurry of speculation in the British media.

The British government says it has no plans to ditch sterling and join the euro.

The pound has slumped against some major currencies as Britain slides into recession, with rising job losses and falling house prices.

Sterling hovered close to record lows against the euro on Friday after the Bank of England's aggressive one percentage point interest rate cut the previous day. It plunged to a more than six-year low against the dollar on Thursday.

The euro was launched in 1999 and is the official currency of 15 EU members, including France and Germany. In addition to Britain, Denmark also chose not to participate.