The minister for Europe, Peter Hain, has called on shops in the UK to adopt a dual pricing system once the euro is launched in January.

In a move which will anger euro-sceptics - and lead to charges that Labour intends to take Britain into the single currency by "stealth" - the minister said that euro notes and coins should become part of everyday life.

Hain also said he believed that Britain was losing jobs by staying out of the eurozone.