Stuart Thomson, the chief economist at the stockbroker Charles Stanley Sutherland, said history showed monetary union could not exist without political union. However, Mr Thomson said it could be triggered sooner rather than later if the dollar were to tumble ­ and the euro surge."Countries such as Italy, Portugal and Greece that would have used devaluation as an escape valve are unlikely to be able to live with a sharp rise in the euro."The Commission is planning disciplinary action against Italy next week for breaching EU budget deficit rules Nick Stamenkovic, at RIA Capital Markets, said. Heathrow and its environs already seem too crowded to take another runway, whereas Stansted is in the midst of purest green countryside. The fact that Stansted is also staunchly Tory country, whereas the flight path to Heathrow contains some key marginals, is by the by.By seeking ways to meet the Government's preferred solution, BAA has put itself on a collision course with all its major customers.

This might suit Mr O'Leary,

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but it is anathema to Heathrow-based airlines such as British Airways. Hence the threatened nuclear option.It's all very well making threats, but in the end it will be the Government that decides all three of these matters - where the runway is sited, who pays for it, and whether BAA ought to be broken up. The commercial case for siting the new facility at Heathrow is still overwhelming, as this is where international travellers most want to arrive and depart from and where they are most likely to want to pay for the privilege.The reasons for opting for Stansted are largely environmental and political. Ryanair reckons it is already being overcharged by BAA for use of Stansted and refuses to be railroaded into helping to fund a second runway It is already actively lobbying to have BAA broken up. Now even British Airways is threatening to get confrontational, but for entirely different reasons.Last month BAA bit the bullet and admitted what had been obvious all along - that there was no chance of building the runway and associated facilities by the planned date of 2011, unless it is cross-subsidised by passengers at Heathrow and Gatwick.

The nuclear option so threatened seems to amount to BA throwing its lot in with Michael O'Leary of Ryanair in lobbying for a break-up of BAA. This would indeed be an unholy alliance of nuclear powers, for the two airlines' reasons for opposing BAA's plans are poles apart.Just to recap, the Government is proposing that the new runway be sited at Standsted, north-east of London. According to Christiansen Capital Advisers, a specialist gaming consultancy employed by PartyGaming to support its flotation, online gaming is set to more than double its share of the total gaming market over the next five years, and within that poker is expected to take an ever greater proportion of the online segment.Well, they would say that wouldn't they? A full house or a busted flush? Take your pick, but it is always as well to remember that what goes up like a rocket tends to come back to earth as a spent stick. Frankly, you might do better sticking to the poker, yet even those who reckon they can stomach the risk might ponder Edward G Robinson's sign-off line on beating the Kid's full house with a straight flush. "You're good, Kid, but as long as I'm around, you are second best.