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Even though the same poll suggests the majority of Germans are unhappy to be giving up their own currency, the Deutschmark, for the euro.

A thousand people were interviewed for the poll by ICM.

Euro notes and coins will start circulating on January 1 2002 and by the end of February the single currency will have replaced the local equivalents in the 12 member countries. This includes Germany, the biggest of the euro economies.

A majority of Germans (54 percent) were unhappy to be giving up Deutschmarks for euros, with 39 percent indicating they are happy to be making the exchange.

The poll also asked if it was right or wrong for the UK to stay outside the euro for the foreseeable future. The majority (55 per cent) think it is wrong, but 36 per cent believe it is right for the UK to remain outside the single currency.

It could be that most Germans believe the euro would have been a much stronger currency if the UK had been prepared to give up the Pound and had taken a full role from the beginning.

There may also be a feeling that by standing on the sidelines, Britain is getting the best of both worlds.

Tuesday 17 July 2001 - Strasbourg, France
The town of Colmar, south of Strasbourg in the Alsace region of France has been ruled alternately by the French and Germans over the centuries. It's very close to the Rhine, and therefore the German border. If you want to spend money in Colmar, you have to use French francs. On the other side of the river the currency is the deutschmark.

The French consider themselves to be more willing to give up their national currency than their German neighbours. In fact the Today programme opinion poll of Germans made it on to the front page of the national newspaper, Le Figaro, under the headline: "Les Allemands ont peur de l'euro!" (The Germans are afraid of the euro).

Even if the French don't share that fear about changing their currency, many people are worried about the possibility of chaos when the new notes and coins are introduced. The companies which operate vending machines say they haven't yet been able to get hold of euros to test machines, so the machines might not work when the euro is introduced..

Big businesses, such as Renault, say the euro will make them more competitive, but it will be a long time before we can buy the same model of car for the same price all over Europe