A new southern chairman has been appointed to take on the task of fighting to keep Britain from joining the single European currency.

Winchester based Mike Killingley, who has been a member of the leading anti-euro no campaign since it was founded, will take on the chairmanship for the southern region, from January. He succeeds David Hearnshaw who is retiring from his position as managing director of Andover-based Preformed Line Products (GB) Ltd. Mr Hearnshaw will remain as a non-executive director of the company and will also be taking on a more central role for the campaign.

Mr Killingley is chairman of Conder Environmental and Southern Vectis, both of which are quoted on the Alternative Investment Market. Conder owns a number of businesses engaged in protecting the environment from oil pollution, while Southern Vectis is an operator of bus services in the Isle of Wight and South Hampshire. Mike is also chairman or a non-executive director of several private companies.

Mike is a Cambridge University economics graduate and a chartered accountant. He was until 1998 senior partner of KPMG Southampton and is a past chairman of the Institute of Directors in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight.

The no campaign is a coalition which believes Britain's economy would be severely affected if the euro were to be adopted as the country's currency. The campaign is battling to raise awareness of the economic implications in preparation for the government's promised referendum on this vital issue.

"There is no justification for claims that joining the euro is inevitable," said Mr Killingley. "More than two-thirds of business and indeed public opinion is against joining the single European currency. The government has obviously been shaken by this fact but we cannot be complacent. The Prime Minister and pro-euro ministers hold all the cards as far as the timing of the referendum and, like Ireland did recently over the Nice Treaty, can call further referenda if they don't like the result."