In the wake of the Wirral fiasco and with the General Election campaign in full swing, there was never any doubt the Tories would enjoy a morale-raising speech when Chancellor Ken Clarke sang for his supper in London's Park Lane on Tuesday night. The occasion was the annual dinner of the British Retail Consortium and his optimistic oration to industry greats was entirely predictable. In true cavalier Clarke style he cast aside the normal mind numbing jargon of Treasuryspeak to deliver a lengthy upbeat performance proclaiming six years of economic growth. Given the rapture with which the Daily Telegraph treated his words on its front page, he probably did a little towards restoring battered Conservative hopes in the shires. Clarke also became the latest Tory politician to become infatuated by the Spice Girls by telling the 550 guests that what he "really, really wants" is healthy sustainable growth and rising living standards for the next five years. Don't we all? But as the Chancellor sought to highlight economic successes he, at the same time, glossed over the deep Tory divisions on Europe and also missed the chance to allay his eager listeners' fears about single currency issues. It was left to the Consortium's chairman Mark Souhami to highlight the massive rise in operating costs which will face the nation's beleaguered shopkeepers as they make the eventual switchover. BRC sums suggest British retailers' burden in a £21.5 billion Euro-wide bill will be £3.5 billion with the implementation ­ particularly dual accounting procedures ­ signalling a nightmare scenario for many. Souhami drew an apt parallel with the move to decimalisation 25 years ago when an implementation board was vital to its smooth introduction. Sadly, at this stage at least, a Euro Currency Board is nowhere in sight. The BRC is keeping up its Brussels lobby to highlight the problem. But whether it be Ken Clarke or Gordon Brown at the Despatch Box after the election, they must publicly recognise the mounting industry concerns with firm supportive action. {{NEWS}}