Europe's single currency, the euro. is celebrating its 15th birthday. Introduced in 12 European countries in 2002, the euro has been stable over long periods of time, but there have also been challenges. Greece has received money from the European Central Bank to restructure its economy and fight its financial problems. Today, 19 of the EU's 28 nations use the euro as their national currency.
Vocabulary
bailout loan = money given to a country or company to help get rid of their financial problems
capital = the most important city of a country ; where the government is
challenges = problems
common ground = things that are the same everywhere, or that should be shared by all people or countries
currency = the money that is used in a country
debt = money that a country has to pay back to others
desperate = worried about
economist = a person who studies how countries trade, buy and sell products
Eurozone = countries that use the Euro as money
far right = very conservative
fiscal = about money
illuminate = light up
launch = start
multiple = several, many
policy = the way a government deals with certain problems
poll = to ask people questions about a certain subject or who they would vote for in an election
prompting = leading to
publicise = to give the public information about something, so that they know the facts
referendum = when people vote to decide on a certain subject
regulations = rules, laws
single currency = one form of money used in many countries
spending cut = here: to spend less than normal
stable = here: to have the same value over a longer period of time
suffer = to undergo a bad time
unrest = political situation in which people behave in a violent way