Twenty-five-year old Carmen Guadalupe Vasquez Aldana laughs when she tells me she does not want to leave it too late to become a mother.

It would be an unremarkable statement for a woman of her age in conservative El Salvador, were it not for the story she has just told me.
At the age of 17, Ms Vazquez was raped by the neighbour of the family which she worked for as a maid.
The crime went unreported because she was scared of his threats.
When the baby was due, she started bleeding heavily.
Not allowed to go home to her family to give birth, she had the baby in the house where she worked.
Her baby died.
She was eventually taken to hospital after her employer saw the poor state she was in and said she did not want two deaths to occur in her house.
Ms Vasquez woke up the next day handcuffed to her hospital bed and accused of murdering her baby.
She recalled how in the weeks that followed she was given no chance to explain what had happened.
"A policeman said to me that if I had been his wife he would have blown my head off," she recalled.
She was sentenced to 30 years in jail for aggravated homicide.
Women in El Salvador used to be allowed to have abortions in cases of rape, or if the health of the baby or the mother were at risk.
But in 1998, a new law enacted under a conservative government completely outlawed it.
El Salvador is not the only country in Latin America to have such strict laws, but it is particularly strict in enforcing it.
Doctors have to inform the authorities if they think a woman has tried to end her pregnancy. If they fail to report such cases, they, too, could face long sentences in jail.
The result is what human rights groups are calling a criminalisation of miscarriages and medical emergencies.
The punishment for abortion is up to eight years in jail.
But in many cases in which the foetus has died, the charge is changed to one of aggravated homicide, which carries a minimum sentence of 30 years.
According to the Citizens' Coalition for the Legalisation of Abortion, 129 women were convicted of abortion-related crimes between 2000 and 2011.
Twenty-six are facing charges of murder.
Ms Vasquez is one of the lucky ones - if you can call her that.
Earlier this year, she walked free after seven years and three months in jail.
She was pardoned after authorities recognised "judicial errors" in her original prosecution.
Maria Teresa Rivera did not have such "luck".
Her nightmare began in November 2011 when she woke up to go to the toilet and started bleeding heavily.
She told her mother-in-law to call the emergency services. A 911-call that she hoped could save her life instead landed her in jail.
When she got to hospital, the nurse said: "Where's the baby?".
"What baby?" Ms Rivera asked.
She said that was the first she knew of being pregnant.
Police found the baby at the bottom of the latrine at the back of her house. Ms Rivera was sentenced to 40 years in jail.
Lawyer Dennis Munoz says that "an air of legal uncertainty has emerged" since hospitals started reporting miscarriages and stillbirths, leading to women being presumed "guilty from the start".
"It threatens the rights to health, to life and to due process," he says.
The president of El Salvador's legislative assembly, Sigfrido Reyes, has called the legislation "medieval".
Speaking to Amnesty International last week, Mr Reyes said that it demonised women who were victims.
According to Amnesty International's Americas Director Erika Guevara-Rosas, the system discriminates against those who are poor.
"A woman who has access to financial resources to pay for a private doctor isn't going to be denounced by a private doctor," she said.
"This is really criminalising women who are from marginalised communities."
Some medical professionals have decided to perform abortions despite the risks involved.
A doctor going by the pseudonym of Dr Hell said he carried out up to three abortions a month, charging those who can afford it as much as $1,000 (Â£660), but offering the procedure for free to those who do not have the means to pay.
"As a health professional, if a woman tells me, 'look I want to continue with my pregnancy,' I help her. But if she turns round to me and says: "This pregnancy is a problem for me," I can give another form of help, despite the laws that exist in this country," he said.
"It's a health issue and I have to respond to it, independently of my emotional and religious views."
Many in El Salvador hold deeply religious views, with a recent survey suggesting around 50% of Salvadoreans consider themselves Catholic and another 35% professing to be evangelical Christians.
San Salvador's auxiliary bishop Gregorio Rosa Chavez told me religious principles needed to be adhered to.
"Every human life is sacred. To get rid of that is committing murder. If there are two lives in danger, you have to save the one that's most fragile and that's the child," he said.
But for many, that denies the rights of Salvadorean women who, after suffering the tragedy of miscarrying a baby, risk facing decades in prison for another miscarriage - a miscarriage of justice.


MPs are to investigate if the way the UK approves the road worthiness of cars is "fit for purpose".

It follows the Volkswagen emissions scandal in which some diesel cars had software fitted designed to cheat emissions tests.
Parliament's Transport Committee said it would look into whether arrangements for testing noise, performance and emissions met EU standards.
The Vehicle Certification Authority oversees approval of UK vehicles.
Louise Ellman, chairwoman of the Transport Committee, said: "The Volkswagen scandal has raised serious concerns about whether vehicle type approval testing is fit for purpose.
"We heard evidence in October that the gap between emissions detected in test conditions and those detected in the real world significant. The testing procedure is clearly inadequate."
Investigations by several authorities across the world have been started since it was revealed in the US that VW used software to cheat tests for nitrogen oxide, a pollutant that can cause health problems.
Environmental campaigners have long complained that the performance of vehicles in "real world" driving bears little resemblance to the results achieved in laboratory tests.
Ms Ellman said: "It is essential to examine these allegations and to ensure that the government and EU take action to restore public confidence."


A prototype patch could help the repair the damage caused by a heart attack, scientists say.

The early work, carried out on mice and pigs, reveals the protein-infused patch encourages the growth of healthy cells and leads to less scarring.
Scarring can be common after a heart attack, making the heart pump less effectively and sometimes fail.
Writing in the journal Nature, researchers say the patch may one day revolutionise treatment.
During an attack, muscle cells in the heart die because of a lack of blood flow and scientists believe repairing or replacing some of these cells may help reduce long-term damage.
In this trial an international team of researchers soaked a collagen patch in a protein known as Fstl1 and stitched it on to the hearts of animals who had experienced heart attacks.
Though the protein occurs naturally in healthy hearts, it becomes depleted in a key layer of the heart after an attack.
Two weeks later the hearts began to grow fresh muscle cells and new blood vessels, while showing signs of pumping more effectively.
Prof Pilar Ruiz-Lozano at Stanford University (which has patented the patch), said: "Many were so sick prior to getting the patch that they would have been candidates for heart transplantation.
"The hope is that a similar procedure could eventually be used in human heart attack patients who suffer severe heart damage."
Commenting on the study in Nature, Prof Gordana Vunjak-Novakovic at Columbia University, said the work "could lead to entirely new modalities for treating heart infarction".
But she cautioned that further studies needed to be done to understand whether this type of approach would work on larger animals and ultimately humans.


Assembly elections will begin in five Indian states in February, the Election Commission of India has announced.

Voting will be held in Uttar Pradesh, Goa, Punjab, Uttarakhand and Manipur, Chief Election Commissioner Nasim Zaidi said.
Polling will be held from 4 February to 8 March. Votes will be counted on 11 March.
Analysts say that the effect of the rupee ban is expected to play a crucial role in all five state elections.
The government said the ban on 500 and 1,000 rupee notes was to curb corruption and the illegal hoarding of wealth as well as promote a shift to digital modes of payment. However, critics said the ban mostly impacted the poor and agrarian communities who largely depend on cash for their daily transactions.
Mr Zaidi said a total of 160 million voters would be eligible to cast their votes in the five states.
Voting will be held in India's most populous state, Uttar Pradesh in seven phases on 11, 15, 19, 23, 27 February as well as 4 and 8 March.
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A victory in this state will be crucial to India's ruling BJP, but they will be up against two strong regional parties, the Samajwadi Party (SP) which currently rules the state and the Bahujan Samajwadi Party (BSP), which is led by Dalit icon and former chief minister Mayawati.
The north-eastern state of Manipur will go to polls in two phases on 4 and 8 March.
The western state of Goa and the northern state of Punjab will vote in a single phase on 4 February while the northern state of Uttarakhand will go to polls on 15 February, along with parts of Uttar Pradesh, which it borders.
Goa is currently ruled by the BJP while India's main opposition party Congress governs Manipur and Uttarakhand. Punjab is ruled by an alliance between the BJP and the regional Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) party.
Mr Zaidi said that steps were being taken to encourage the participation of women in all five state elections.
Some polling booths will be entirely staffed by women, and separate facilities will be provided for them in areas where there is reluctance to mingle with men. The elections will also be disabled friendly with wheelchairs and ramps provided at booths for those who need them.


Sponsors have moved quickly to distance themselves from Maria Sharapova after the five-time Grand Slam tennis champion admitted failing a drug test.

Nike has suspended its relationship, while Tag Heuer has cut its ties.
Nike said it was "saddened and surprised" at her admission that she tested positive for a banned substance at the Australian Open in January.
Ms Sharapova said she had been taking meldonium since 2006, on the advice of her family doctor.
She is one of the highest paid female athletes with earnings of over $30m last year from winnings and endorsements.
In addition to the moves from Nike and Swiss watchmaker Tag Heuer, German carmaker Porsche said it was "postponing planned activities" with Ms Sharapova until the situation became clearer.
Nigel Currie, an independent sports consultant, said brands would not have responded so quickly five years ago, but they now have to react faster in the modern, social media environment.
"They are paranoid about their image, and the slightest risk to their image, they run to the hills."
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Maria Sharapova's relationship with Nike dates back to when she was 11 years old.
Nike said: "We have decided to suspend our relationship with Maria while the investigation continues.
"We will continue to monitor the situation."
In 2010, the 28-year-old Russian tennis player signed a new eight-year contract with the US sportswear giant worth $70m (Â£49m) as well as a cut on sales of her own branded clothes.
Tag Heuer was in talks to extend its deal with Ms Sharapova, which ran out at the end of last year.
But the Swiss watchmaker said those talks had now been suspended and the company had decided not to renew the contract.
In 2014, Porsche named her as its first female ambassador and she signed a three-year deal with the car company.
That contract is due to end at the end of this year.
In a statement, the carmaker said: "We are saddened by the recent news announced by Maria Sharapova. Until further details are released and we can analyse the situation, we have chosen to postpone planned activities."
Ms Sharapova is also the face of Avon perfume, Luck, and the water company Evian. They have yet to comment on the matter.
Paul Swangaurd, from the Warsaw Sports Marketing Center at the University of Oregon, said Nike's decision reflected a "new era" for the way sponsors deal with these issues.
Nike is taking a "very proactive approach", which resulted from "them being burned by a lot of athletes over the years, and growing impatient with putting so much investment behind athletes that potentially comes back to bite them in the court of public opinion".
Last month, Nike dropped Manny Pacquiao after the boxer said homosexual people were "worse than animals".
The company also severed ties with cyclist and drugs cheat Lance Armstrong as well as athlete Oscar Pistorius, who killed his girlfriend.
Ms Sharapova tested positive for meldonium, a substance she said she had been taking since 2006 for health issues.
The International Tennis Federation (ITF) said she would be provisionally suspended from 12 March.
Ms Sharapova said: "I did fail the test and take full responsibility for it."
She said she had taken meldonium after being given it by her family doctor and had known the drug by the name mildronate.
"A few days ago, after I received a letter from the ITF, I found out it also has another name of meldonium, which I did not know," she said.
It is meant for angina patients but athletes like it because it helps their endurance and ability to recover from intensive exercise.
It is on the banned list now because Wada started seeing it in lots of samples and found it does have performance-enhancing properties.
It was on Wada's 'watchlist' for over a year and added to the banned list on 1 January.
Made in Latvia, it is widely available - without prescription and at low cost - in many east European countries, but it is not licensed in most western countries, including the United States.
It is thought that hundreds of athletes have been using it and there are a lot more cases in the pipeline.


Former Rangers manager Walter Smith believes a sense of bitterness about the way the club was treated remains as they gear up for Premiership football.

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Smith maintains there was "no reason" for Rangers to have to re-enter the league in the lowest tier.
"It'll be a massive motivation for Rangers. It would certainly be a motivation for me," said Smith.
He also believes the Ibrox board "have to find a way" to back manager Mark Warburton to compete in the top flight.
With the club mired in debt, Rangers entered administration and then liquidation in 2012 and had to re-enter the Scottish football pyramid in the fourth tier.
Smith feels Sunday's Scottish Cup semi-final against Celtic will not be an accurate gauge of how Rangers will fare next season and accepts Celtic are "the favoured team".
However, the former Rangers boss believes Warburton's men go into the tie in a "far more optimistic frame of mind than last season" when Celtic were comfortable winners in the League Cup semi-final.
"Four years ago, the club was at its lowest level ever," said Smith. "We were nearly starting a season, or were five days away from starting a season with only five players, no Rangers manager has ever been in that circumstance before.
"And no Rangers manager has ever been in the circumstance that he [Smith's successor Ally McCoist] was in for the next three years.
"I think it [ill feeling towards Rangers] will always be there.
"There was no necessity for Rangers to be put down into the Third Division and I think that's the thing that will always stay in Scottish football.
"I think there'll be a bitterness in the Rangers ranks that that's happened.
"There's no doubt it was the wrong move in my eyes. Scottish football has been worse off and a lot of the teams who were happy to see Rangers go down have suffered and found themselves relegated or in the process of being relegated.
"So, there will be that bitterness. How can they forget what happened to them there? You can't forget that."
On the prospect of providing a title challenge in the top flight, Smith said: "Celtic look as though they're going to get five in a row; it's a big thing.
"That's them closer to getting to the nine or 10 in a row. So, Rangers will have to show a reaction."


Carlos Tevez scored the winning spot-kick as Argentina beat Colombia on penalties to reach the Copa America semi-finals.

Argentina dominated throughout but found Arsenal keeper David Ospina in fine form as he denied Sergio Aguero, Lionel Messi and Nicolas Otamendi.
That meant penalties were needed and, after Colombia's Jeison Murillo missed, Tevez converted to seal a 5-4 victory.
Argentina face either Brazil or Paraguay in Tuesday's semi-final.
It capped a memorable day for Tevez, who came off the bench to score moments after a move from Juventus to his hometown club Boca Juniors was confirmed.
It was also a deserved win for Argentina who, having scored just four goals in their three previous games at the tournament, displayed their attacking intent from the outset.
They embarked on wave after wave of attacks but found themselves up against a Colombia side that had set up to frustrate their opponents.
And when Argentina did find their way through the Colombia defence, Ospina was there to deny them.
The goalkeeper, whose future at Arsenal is in doubt with the imminent arrival of Petr Cech from Chelsea, produced a stunning double save to keep out Aguero's shot from close range and then somehow get back up to fling himself at Lionel Messi's header on the follow-up.
That gave Colombia confidence, and they finally managed to muster a shot on target in the second half when Jackson Martinez powered a header towards goal, but Sergio Romero got down to make the save.
However, it was left to Ospina to keep Colombia in the game as he made another crucial save, this time denying Otamendi when the defender volleyed a corner at goal and Ospina pushed the ball onto his post.
With no extra-time in the Copa America quarter-finals or semi-finals, the game went to penalties and, after five were missed, Tevez stepped up to seal victory.


Asian shares headed mostly higher following gains on Wall Street, as Japanese shares led the way and ended a four-day losing streak.

US benchmark indexes - the Dow Jones, S&P 500 and the Nasdaq - all closed more than 1.2% higher overnight on a rally by technology and banking shares - setting the tone for Asia.
Japan's Nikkei 225 closed up 1.7% at 20,382.97, posting the biggest percentage gain in four months.
The yen strengthened on the US dollar.
The rally came after Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda said the currency is already "very weak" on Wednesday.
The dollar was at 123.21 yen in Tokyo, but still some distance away from a 13-year high of 125.86 it hit last week.
Chinese markets experienced mixed trading on economic data released during the afternoon session.
Retail sales and industrial production rose 10.1% and 6.1% respectively in May from the previous year, with both measures in line with expectations.
Fixed asset investment, meanwhile, grew more slowly than forecast, up 11.4% in the first five months of the year from a year ago.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng index closed up 0.83% to 26,907.85, while the Shanghai Composite closed up 0.3% to 5,121.59.
South Korean shares headed higher after the country's central bank cut interest rates to a record low, citing a deadly outbreak of Mers as a concern for the economy.
The benchmark Kospi index finished up 0.3% to 2,056.61 - ending a four-day losing streak.
The country followed a surprise move made earlier in the day by New Zealand's central bank, which also cut interest rates by 25 basis points to 3.25%.
The  benchmark NZ50 share index closed up 0.9% to 5,856.57 after the central bank left the door open for further easing to boost a slowing economy.
In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 index ended higher 1.4% to 5,556.70 on positive employment data.
Australian employment jumped in May by 42,000 jobs, well above expectations, while the unemployment rate fell to a one-year low of 6%.


The Green Party has a "strong chance" of getting its first ever AMs elected in May, MP Caroline Lucas has said.

The party wanted to "shake up the Senedd", she said, at the start of a two-day campaign visit to Cardiff.
Ms Lucas said she was confident of seeing Green AMs elected via the regional lists due to proportional representation.
She said the party would speak for those who cared about social justice, the environment and jobs.
Wales was the one place in the whole of the UK where the Greens did not have any elected members or councillors, the Brighton Pavilion MP added.
"We really are on the cusp of getting elected this time around," she said.
"We're really confident that once we do get elected we can make a real difference to Wales."


The death of a man shot in the head at work 10 years ago will feature on BBC One's Crimewatch programme later.

James Stanton, a 58-year-old from Thornton, Merseyside, was shot by two men who burst into Aintree Commercial Vehicles in Thornton on 24 July 2006.
They fled the scene in a stolen blue Toyota Avensis car, registration DM53 MKK, which was later found burnt out.
Police are still offering a Â£20,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of his killers.
The vehicle, taken from Sefton Street, Liverpool, on 25 May 2006, was discovered on Blindfoot Road, Rainford.
Det Ch Insp Dave Brunskill of Merseyside Police said: "Ten years have passed since the murder of James Stanton and his wife Jean and family are still suffering from their loss.
"They can't rest until those responsible for his death are arrested, charged and brought before the courts."
He said officers were continuing to appeal to anyone who may have seen the car between 25 May and the night of the murder, although the car may not have been displaying its original number plates at the time of the killing.
He added: "I'm hoping that with the passing of time, someone watching tonight's show might find it in them to come forward and help [James'] family get some form of closure."
Mr Stanton had four children and nine grandchildren.
You can watch Crimewatch at 21:00 BST on BBC One


A blue plaque is being unveiled in north Belfast on Friday to commemorate Eoin MacNeill, the founder of the Gaelic League and the Irish Volunteers.

MacNeill famously attempted to call off the 1916 Easter Rising.
The plaque, marking the 150th anniversary of his birth, is at the politician's former school, St Malachy's College.
It is being unveiled by his grandson and former tÃ¡naiste (Irish deputy prime minister) Michael McDowell.
"As a co-founder of the Gaelic League, Eoin Mac Neill assured his place in his country's history, but he was also an eminent scholar, historian, and linguist," Chris Spurr, chairman of the Ulster History Circle, said.
"The Ulster History Circle are delighted to commemorate Eoin MacNeill with a blue plaque at the college he attended.
"The circle would like to thank St Malachy's College for their assistance, and we are also grateful to Foras na Gaelige for their financial support towards the plaque."
Eoin MacNeill was born John McNeill in 1867 in Glenarm on the County Antrim coast.
He boarded in St Malachy's from 1881 until 1887.


A US sports body says it will stop holding events in North Carolina if the state does not revoke its controversial "bathroom bill".

The National Collegiate Athletic Association says the state will forfeit 133 applications for events if it is not repealed in two days, reports say.
Under House Bill Two (HB2), transgender people must use toilets that correspond to the sex on their birth certificates.
The bill also removed several anti-discrimination measures.
North Carolina is under mounting pressure to repeal the bill, which has already led some businesses, entertainers and teams to boycott the state.
The NBA moved its high-revenue 2017 All Star game from Charlotte and the NCAA itself moved seven games from the state during the current season. The state stands to lose up to $3.8bn (Â£3bn) over 12 years as a result of the boycott, AP news agency says.
However state officials have failed to reach an agreement despite months of negotiations.
On Tuesday Republicans in the US Congress and North Carolina's Democratic governor blamed each other for the continuing impasse.
Republicans are believed to be pushing for a religious conscience provision as a compromise in the deal.
That would copy a bill enacted in Indiana allowing service providers to object to state law if they deem it contrary to their religion.


London Mayor Sadiq Khan has confirmed fares across the Transport for London (TfL) network will be frozen from January until 2020.

The fares freeze was a significant promise made by Mr Khan during this year's mayoral election race.
The mayor said the fares freeze would save the average household £200 over the next four years.
The freeze is expected to cost £640m. It will not apply to travelcards, monthly Oyster cards or daily caps.
They can be used on services provided by other operators.
During the mayoral election campaign Mr Khan promised Londoners "won't pay a penny more for their travel in 2020 than they do today".
Bus and tram tickets, Pay As You Go journeys on the Tube, Docklands Light Railway and TfL rail services will all be frozen.
Bike hire charges will also not rise before 2020.
But TfL will have to make cuts of at least £591m by 2018, the point at which it will lose its government operational grant.
The fares freeze is likely to mean further cuts to TfL's budget as it seeks to absorb the cost.
The mayor has undertaken a review of TfL's layers of management, promised to cut agency staff, review projects and freeze salaries of top managers to make savings.
He also repeated his call for the government to follow his lead and freeze fares on rail routes into the capital, including services run by troubled Southern Railway.
Mr Khan said: "After years of huge fare increases for London passengers, I'm delighted to be formally announcing our plans to freeze TfL fares across London's transport network.
"Before taking office I was determined to ensure we took significant action to make public transport more affordable and we've already taken major steps through the introduction of the Hopper ticket that in just two months has saved Londoners money on over 10 million bus journeys."


Charlton director Richard Murray insists owner Roland Duchatelet is committed to the club but the Belgian has "underestimated" the Championship.

Fans protested against Duchatelet's ownership of the Addicks both before and after Saturday's draw against Nottingham Forest at The Valley.
"Through Roland's backing we have become financially stable," non-executive chairman Murray said.
"No owner wants to run down a football club - it defies logic."
In a statement posted on the Charlton website, Murray said the club's strategy was to be financially stable, competitive in the Championship and have ambitions of reaching the Premier League.
However, Charlton fans have questioned Duchatelet's motives since his takeover of the club in January 2014; criticising the turnover of managers, the club's player recruitment and comments made by chief executive Katrien Meire.
Supporters were angered when a video emerged of Meire saying it was "weird" fans felt a sense of ownership of the club when "the bills are paid by someone else".
The Addicks are currently 23rd in the Championship, with inexperienced Belgian Karel Fraeye taking on the role of interim head coach since 24 October, when Guy Luzon was sacked.
Charlton fans have held protests directed at Duchatelet and Meire at recent home games, both from the stands and outside the boardroom at The Valley.
Saturday's protest was the largest yet and the Charlton Athletic Supporters' Trust said Murray's statement does not address "the real issues that are prompting the protests".
They added: "The club's soft and pre-prepared answers are clearly designed to influence the media positively, but they are misdirecting readers about the truth of the current situation.
"It's fine that Murray admits the squad isn't good enough and that two years after Duchatelet took over the club is still underestimating the Championship.
"But it's somewhat indefensible - it's the result of the owner's plans and Katrien Meire's execution of them."
Murray defended Duchatelet's financial approach - pointing to a 40% increase in the playing budget, tying players to long-term contracts and investment in the stadium.
"Roland's philosophy is that we should try and keep our losses to a reasonable level," Murray added.
"The strategy is to have a mix of academy-produced players, young overseas talent with some experienced British players.
"This is a very competitive league and we have put a little too much faith in our overseas players to suddenly come in and play 46 games a year."
Murray also admits the club need to improve their communications with supporters.
"The board accepts it's not been as good as it could and they are taking a number of steps to improve that," he said.
"But it's important to realise that no football club gets all things right."


Bank of England chief economist Andy Haldane says he may vote for a rate rise in the second half of the year.

He said leaving a rate hike until too late risks steeper rate rises in the future.
Sterling briefly pushed above $1.27 after his comment, having dipped below $1.26 prior to Wednesday's Queen's Speech.
Mr Haldane's comments are at odds to those made by Governor Mark Carney.
On Tuesday Mr Carney said "now is not yet the time to begin" rate rises.
In August last year the Bank cut interest rates to 0.25% after signs of a slowdown following the Brexit vote.
But, in a speech in Bradford, Mr Haldane said: "Provided the data are still on track, I do think that beginning the process of withdrawing some of the incremental stimulus provided last August would be prudent moving into the second half of the year."
Mr Haldane said the risk of moving too late with a rate hike had grown, after UK economic growth and inflation had proven more resilient than expected.
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However, Mr Haldane said he had not voted for a rate rise in June due to there being "few signs of higher wage growth" and the "chance of a sharper than expected slowing in the economy".
Both are reasons for monetary policy "not to rush its fences," he said, adding that the general election "has thrown up a dust-cloud of uncertainty".
"It is unclear what twists and turns lie ahead, with potentially important implications for asset prices and, at least potentially, confidence among businesses and consumers.
"I do not think adding a twist or a turn from monetary policy would, in this environment, be especially helpful in building confidence, at least until the dust-cloud has started to settle," he said.
In his speech Mr Haldane also examined why UK wage growth has been weak in recent years.
He said that longer-term factors included a decrease in unionisation and an increase in self-employment, flexible and part-time working, and zero-hours contracts.
He said technology and globalisation "may have weakened the bargaining power of workers".
He added that "the impact of the financial crisis on slack in the labour market" was also a factor.


The Taliban have announced the start of their annual spring offensive, days after a devastating attack on Afghan troops.

The group said the "main focus" would be foreign forces, who would be targeted with a mix of conventional, guerrilla, insider and suicide attacks.
The Taliban would also focus on developing areas "cleansed from the enemy", the statement said.
The country is still reeling from last week's attack on a military base.
About 10 insurgents disguised as soldiers drove into a training compound in Mazar-e Sharif and killed at least 135 soldiers, according to an official death toll.
Some reports suggest it was even higher.
Afghanistan's defence minister and army chief of staff resigned over the attack.
The Taliban's annual spring offensive normally marks the start of the "fighting season", but this year militants continued fighting during the winter months.
The Taliban said that this year's offensive was to be named Operation Mansouri, after the Taliban leader killed by a US drone strike last year.
It promised a "twin-tracked political and military approach".
In areas it held, the focus would be on development and building, as well as propaganda "to help those deceived by the enemy see the truth of our struggle".
In territory held by the government, the Taliban would target "foreign forces, their military and intelligence infrastructure".
The interior ministry told AFP news agency the Taliban statement was "not something new".
But the offensive comes with Afghan forces, supported by about 8,400 US troops and 5,000 Nato soldiers, facing what visiting US Defence Secretary James Mattis described this week as "another tough year".
According to a US government estimate in November 2016, the Afghan government had uncontested control of only 57% of the country - down from 72% a year earlier.
In March, the Taliban seized control of Sangin, a strategically important district in the south.
IS militants have also established a small stronghold in the east and have carried out attacks in Kabul.
The top US commander in Afghanistan says more troops are needed to break the "stalemate" with the Taliban.
Mr Mattis, speaking in Kabul on Monday, said the White House was reviewing Afghan policy and that dialogue was ongoing.


Police are investigating the discovery of a man's body in the water off the Isle of Cumbrae.

The man, who has not yet been identified, was found in the Firth of Clyde near Cumbrae ferry terminal at 14:00.
A spokesman for Police Scotland said inquiries were at an early stage to establish the man's identity and the circumstances around his death.


More than 200 people are attending a hearing into plans to build a north-south electricity interconnector.

The plan is to connect the two grids using 138km of overhead lines between a new substation near Moy in County Tyrone and County Meath.
EirGird, the company behind the proposal, has said the interconnector is essential to secure a reliable supply into the future.
It is the second oral hearing by An Bord Pleanála into the matter.
An Bord Pleanála, the Irish planning authority, will hear submissions from EirGrid and opponents to the plans, at the hearing in Carrickmacross, County Monaghan.
It is due to last three months.
The first hearing collapsed in 2010 after hearing testimony for several weeks.
Under the proposals, 299 pylons would be constructed over the 103km route between the border at Clontibret in Monaghan and a large substation in Batterstown, County Meath.
The pylons would vary in height between 26m and 51m across Monaghan, Cavan and Meath.
A lawyer for EirGrid told the hearing that the project was essential to secure a safe, reliable, economic and efficient electricity supply between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.
He said the development would save 20m euros (£15.47m) annually by 2020 rising to 60m euros (£46.42m) by 2030.
Campaigners want the cables to be put underground for environmental and health reasons.
The lawyer for EirGrid said the company had looked at the possibility of installing high voltage cables underground but said the best technical solution was to keep the cables over ground for the whole duration of the route.
In the Republic of Ireland, the state-owned commercial energy company, EirGrid, has submitted plans for the southern half of the project.
In Northern Ireland, the lead is being taken by System Operator for Northern Ireland (SONI).
A separate planning application is before the Planning Appeals Commission, with a hearing due to begin on 21 June.


Swansea City forward Modou Barrow has been named in The Gambia squad to face Mauritania in this month's 2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers.

Barrow, 23, made his debut in the 0-0 draw against South Africa in June.
But he missed the 2018 World Cup qualifying elimination by Namibia because of his club engagements.
"It's good to be back and give 100% to the Gambia. We'll go there and play without any pressure because we have got a good team," he told BBC Sport.
Rhyl FC defender Ibou Touray, who plays in the Welsh Premier League, is also named in the squad.
Barrow, who became the first Gambian to score in the English Premier League in Swansea's 3-2 defeat at Bournemouth, added: "I hope the nation supports the coach."
Coach Sang Ndong has also recalled Leeds United's Mustapha Carayol, who appeared once for the Scorpions in a friendly with Uganda.
Ebrima Sohna, Abdoulie Mansally, Sanna Nyassi and Ousman Jallow have been overlooked whilst FC Sion's Pa Modou Jagne withdrew because of injuries but six local based players have been included.
The Scorpions who sit third in Group M with one point from their two outings will travel to Nouakchott to face the Mauritania on 25 March before hosting the return leg in Bakau four days later.
The Gambia squad:
Goalkeepers: Modou Jobe (Niarry-Tally, Senegal), Christopher Allen (GPA, Gambia)
Defenders: Kebba Ceesay (Lech Poznan, Poland), Bubacarr Sanneh (AC Horsens, Denmark), Omar Colley (Djurgaden IF, Sweden), Mass Manga (Hawks, Gambia), Ibou Touray (Rhyl FC, Wales), Kaba Sambou (Stade de Mbour, Senegal),
Midfielders: Alieu Jatta (Generation Foot, Senegal), Gregory Sambou (GPA, Gambia),  Alagie Bah (Real de Banjul, Gambia), Lamin Charty (Hawks, Gambia), Hamza Barry (Hapoel Tel Aviv, Israel), Mustapha Carayol (Leeds United, England), Modou Barrow (Swansea City, England)
Forwards: Muhammed Conteh (Mbour Petit Cote, Senegal), Demba Savage (Hacken, Sweden), Omar Jagne (Dalkurd, Sweden), Pa Amat Dibba (GIF Sundsvall, Sweden), Emil Sambou (Armed Forces, Gambia).


Welsh cyclist Becky James says she has a new perspective on life and sport after a cancer scare.

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The 23-year-old had an operation to remove abnormal cells following a cervical screening in May 2014.
The double world champion's health concerns contributed to her missing the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.
"At the time I thought, 'It doesn't matter about being injured, the main thing is I have to get my health right,'" she said.
"That is definitely the way I think now," James added in a frank interview for the BBC's Sport Wales programme, to be broadcast on Friday.
James won gold in the keirin and sprint at the 2013 Track World Championships, but has been out for 18 months with shoulder and knee injuries.
She made her comeback at the Revolution Series in Derby at the weekend, and has been named in the GB team for the Dudenhofen GP in Germany.
James said her priorities have changed but retains her ambition to succeed as a international athlete.
"Being out for over a year has given me a massive perspective on being happy and enjoying what I do," she said.
James did not have cancer, but a smear test revealed abnormal cells that could have developed into the disease if left untreated.
"I went in for my routine smear and two weeks later had the result which said 'abnormal smear' and then I went down and they explained it to me," she said.
James said a nurse explained her result on a scale which had five categories - clear, mild, moderate, severe and cancer.
"I asked, 'Where am I?' and she said, 'You're here, on severe' and I thought, 'Oh my gosh.' I really didn't know what to expect," added James.
"She explained everything - how they burn cells away and that if you leave it then it can develop into cancer.
"I was reading about it on the internet - possibly the worst thing you could do - I was just constantly worrying about it.
"It was a really stressful time, I found it really emotional but I had my family there," added James, whose partner George North - the Northampton Saints and Wales rugby union wing - returned to training in June after a series of head injuries.
James is concentrating her efforts on qualifying for the 2016 Olympics in Rio.
After making her comeback in Derby this month, James will next compete as part of the GB team in Germany on the 28 and 29 August.
She then intends to compete in three World Cup events over the winter to gain qualifying points.
Britain's Olympic track team will be selected in mid-June 2016, with performances during the period running from 1 October 2015 to 1 June 2016 taken into consideration.
"There was times when I didn't know if I was going to get back and I used to get so upset about everything," added James.
"But once I came through that I realised I love what I do and that's why I'm coming back and why I want to get to the Olympics because I love my job and I love cycling."
You can watch Sport Wales from 20:00 BST every Friday on BBC Two Wales and on the iPlayer.


A robber who was caught after one of his victims recognised him on Facebook has been jailed.

Omar Famuyide was spotted on the website's "people you may know" feature by the victim of a knifepoint car robbery in Birmingham.
Detectives then linked him to a string of other robberies and firearms offences.
The 21-year-old, of Highgate, Birmingham, was jailed for 17 years at the city's crown court.
More on this and other Birmingham stories
He was found guilty of robbery, attempted robbery, possession of a firearm and possession of a knife after a trial.
Among his crimes, Famuyide was one of two men who forced entry into the Ambassador's Relaxation Suite in Florence Street last July.
Once inside, the men threatened women with a metal bar and a handgun, before escaping empty handed.
A month later, Famuyide stole a car at gunpoint from a man in Highgate.
The vehicle was found two days later with the handgun that was fired in the relaxation suite a month earlier, and keys to another vehicle stolen at knifepoint.
The victim of the second robbery recognised Famuyide by coincidence on Facebook, and he was later arrested.
Det Con Rhiannon Daff said the Facebook information was "a crucial part of the investigation" and "the final piece of the jigsaw."


A former Met Police officer has told a court that a man who alleged he sexually abused him as a boy in Wrexham was a "compulsive liar".

Edward Huxley, 70, from Cookham, Berkshire, told Mold Crown Court he was innocent and could not understand why the claims had been made.
The retired civil servant and six other men are charged with sexual abuse dating back to the 1970s and 80s.
The case is part of the Operation Pallial investigation into child abuse.
Mr Huxley told the court he did not go to gay bars in Wrexham and was not part of the gay scene in the town at the time.
He said he did not know any of his six co-defendants until he met them during the trial.
Mr Huxley said he was interested in men aged 25 to 45 and had previously been involved with people older than himself.
He said his current partner is 36 but told the jury he was not interested in anyone under the age of 25.
"Youngsters have never interested me. Neither conversationally or their bodies," he said.
When asked how the main complainant knew him, he said people would have known he was a civil servant and the civil service was based at the barracks in the town.
"I never took him to the barracks, I don't know him, I have never met him. He is a liar in these allegations against me," he told the jury.
The trial continues.


Britain's six-time Paralympic champion David Weir will compete in a track event for the final time in next month's Anniversary Games in London.

Weir, who won four gold medals at London 2012 and two at Beijing 2008, will continue to race in road events.
In January, he said he would never compete for Britain again after an unsuccessful Paralympics in Rio.
"It's an opportunity to say goodbye to the fans and I jumped at the chance," Weir, 38, told BBC Radio 5 live.
"I just felt there was no desire for me to race on the track any more and this will be like a testimonial for me."
Weir fell out with British Athletics after Rio 2016, saying he was "gobsmacked" at his treatment by wheelchair racing coach Jenni Banks.
He said he felt like he had been "stabbed in the back" after he crashed out of the marathon in Brazil, his last Paralympic event.
Banks said at the time she did not want to comment.
Weir, who was born with a spinal cord transection that left him unable to use his legs, has won a record seven London Marathons, most recently in April.
He also won six titles at the IPC Athletics World Championships.
"The chance to compete one last time in the London Stadium was something I just couldn't miss," he said.
"It is such a special place for me and London 2012 was the highlight of my career, so to have one last race and get a big send-off in that stadium will be fantastic.
"When I get out onto the track and hear the crowd for the last time, I am sure the memories of London 2012 will come flooding back."
The Anniversary Games take place on 9 July.
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Scottish councils recorded a revenue surplus of almost £70m last year, according to new figures.

Official statistics show local authorities reported an overall revenue surplus of £69.4m for 2014-15, compared with a deficit of £54.8m in 2013-14.
Finance Secretary John Swinney said the figures showed councils had been treated "very fairly".
But a Cosla spokesman said the high-level figures hid the "true story" of what was happening on the ground.
There has been anger from unions and opposition parties over the local government settlement in the 2016/17 Scottish Budget passed by MSPs at Holyrood last week.
Cosla said the deal would cut council budgets by £350m and put 15,000 jobs at risk.
But Mr Swinney countered that the overall reduction in funding for 2016/17 was less than 1% of councils' estimated total expenditure, when £250m to support the integration of health and social care was taken into account.
He said: "These figures demonstrate that, despite cuts of nearly 10% to the Scottish budget from the UK government, local government has been treated very fairly by the Scottish government and protected from the worst impact of UK cuts.
"The Scottish Parliament Information Centre, in its research briefing on local government finance, found that the council tax freeze was not only fully funded but could indeed be said to be 'over-funded'."
He added: "It is welcome news that the highest spends in 2014-15 were on education and social care, and I hope to see this trend continue."
Responding to Mr Swinney, a spokesman for Cosla said: "It is simply wrong to think of this money as being a surplus sitting in a bank account.
"These are high level figures which hide the true story of what is happening on the ground."
He added: "The fact is that the considerable majority of these reserves will already be committed by councils for specific and planned areas of local spend such as service transformation, creating capacity and responding to severe weather to name but a few.
"It must also be highlighted that these figures show the position for 2014/15 and so are already out of date and do not reflect the real financial situation faced by councils today."
The spokesman said reserves allow councils to protect against financial shocks, adding: "No more so is this the case for the 2016/17 budget.
"If councils hadn't had the reserves there then the impact on front line services and communities would have been far greater than is the case."


England goalkeeper Joe Hart will have a medical on Monday before completing a season-long loan deal with West Ham.

Hart has been told he can find another club by Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola after spending last season at Torino.
It is anticipated City will fund part of Hart's wages and the agreement will include an option for West Ham to buy the 30-year-old.
Hart's City contract is not set to expire until 2019.


A recent al-Shabab directive that all its members change their mobile phone numbers shows how tech-savvy the al-Qaeda-linked Somali Islamist group remains and how their communications strategy is key to their survival.

Concerned that their messages may be intercepted, the leadership has also banned members from using smart phones.
The group has long run what is regarded as a slick media machine.
Even without smart phones, it has been known for its sophisticated handling of social media, a reputation at odds with its regular bans on communication technology for Somali citizens.
In particular, it has made extensive use of Twitter in order to get its message across.
It has also devoted considerable resources to producing a series of promotional videos.
Al-Shabab's material aims to spread the group's ideology of establishing an Islamic state in Somalia, in line with al-Qaeda's stated ambition of setting up a global Islamic caliphate.
It wants to achieve this both by military conquest and also the conversion of souls - for which communication technology is a key tool.
Al-Shabab's well-produced video documentaries deliver the jihadi narrative in an appealing form to Somali audiences in the diaspora.
They are aimed at young people of Somali origin such as Hassan Abdi Dhuhulow, a suspect in last year's Westgate mall attack in Kenya. His family is said to have moved to Norway as refugees in 1999.
The group's documentaries are produced by its media arm, the al-Kataib foundation.
Many of them show al-Shabab engaging in charity work and other activities that depict the group as a legitimate authority.
However, they can also be quite gruesome - showing the corpses of those they have killed, including alleged spies who are often beheaded.
And they contain threats to their perceived enemies - in Somalia, neighbouring countries such as Kenya which are helping Somalia's government and the West.
The videos portray al-Shabab's fight as part of a wider global conflict in which Islam is under threat.
Al-Shabab also has its own radio station, Radio Andalus.
The group has acquired half a dozen relay stations, mainly by seizing private radio stations such as HornAfrik, Holy Koran Radio and the Global Broadcasting Corporation radio and their equipment - including some from the BBC.
The website Kismaayo News reported that by 2013, the group had 50 journalists working for Andalus radio.
When it comes to recruiting presenters, al-Shabab is known for its attention to detail.
It generally takes care to use presenters with British or American accents to deliver its English language audio statements.
With statements in Arabic, standard Arabic is used, and the presenters clearly have a high level of education in the language and in Islamic texts.
Swahili-language presenters use classical Kiswahili as spoken in Tanzania and coastal Kenya.
The majority of al-Shabab's audio output, though, is in Somali and is presented articulately and fluently.
A number of pro-al-Shabab websites have emerged, which host material produced by the group and act as vehicles for furthering its military aims.
The content is intended to frustrate efforts by the Somali government and its allies - mainly the African Union forces fighting in Somalia - to eliminate the group.
Al-Shabab has often used Twitter to challenge the veracity of claims made by the African Union forces.
Its Twitter accounts are now closed, but Kenya's military spokesman Maj-Gen Chirchir has continued to attack the group's media policy.
On 20 May he tweeted: "Al Shabaab Courtesy calls! The more videos you release to scare Kenyans the more WE make visitations. Consider peace, the better option."
When the group's official spokesman, Sheikh Ali Dheere, appears on video, he is surrounded by fighters.
He reportedly answers to the group's overall leader and oversees a bevy of apparently enthusiastic journalists.
Al-Shabab has honed its media strategy as aggressively as it has enforced its bans on the Somali population.
As the group loses control of parts of the country, it has issued a series of bans on technology:
BBC Monitoring reports and analyses news from TV, radio, web and print media around the world. For more reports from BBC Monitoring, click here. You can follow BBC Monitoring on Twitter and Facebook.


Tony Blair has called for a "proper ground war" against so-called Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.

The former British prime minister said it was not possible to defeat the group through air strikes alone.
He also admitted that the West had "underestimated" the problems in Iraq after the toppling of Saddam Hussein.
He refused to answer questions on the Chilcot report into the Iraq war - to be published next month - at the Centre on Religion and Geopolitics event.
But BBC Political Correspondent Iain Watson said he gave a strong steer on his likely response to any criticisms he is likely for face from Chilcot.
Mr Blair said: "We underestimated profoundly the forces that were at work in the region and that would take advantage of the change once you topple the regime.
"That's the lesson. The lesson is not actually complicated, the lesson is simple - it's that.
"It's that when you remove a dictator, out come these forces of destabilisation - whether al-Qeada on the Sunni side or Iran and its militia on the other side."
Analysis by Iain Watson, BBC political correspondent
Tony Blair didn't utter the C word - he won't comment on the Chilcot inquiry into the Iraq war until the report is published on 6 July.
But at an event in central London organised by the Centre on Religion and Geopolitics - a think tank which he helped to set up - he made it clear he would be unapologetic for his role in taking Britain to war in 2003.
Read more from Iain
Turning to the threat posed by IS - also known as Isis and Daesh - he said it had to be tackled before it could make further inroads in Libya.
He said "proper ground war" was needed to defeat the group, which could include British troops in a support role.
"There is no way of defeating these people without defeating them on the ground. Air strikes are not going to defeat Isis, they have got to be tackled on the ground," he said at the event in Westminster.
That did not necessarily mean British troops doing the fighting, argued Mr Blair, who suggested "our forces could be in support".
But to defeat IS militants "you are going to have to go and wage a proper ground war against them", he added.
He told the event the choice was not between a full-scale ground invasion force, which could govern the land after the fighting, and not making any intervention at all, arguing that smaller-scale deployments by the US were already making a difference.
"You have got to defeat these people on the ground. The armed forces of America, the UK, France, other major countries have both experience and capability so even if we are using them in support of local forces, you have just got to decide what our objective is.
"Is our objective to defeat this enemy? My answer to that is yes."
Asked whether the legacy of the Iraq war meant it was more difficult for a UK leader to deploy troops overseas, Mr Blair said: "You can describe it as a legacy or describe it as a fact that arises from the nature of the conflict."
He added: "We are not being honest with out public if we are saying it is possible to defeat these people without making the commitment to defeat them and to do what it takes to defeat them.
"In my view, defeating them is absolutely fundamental because if we don't defeat them they are going to come and attack us here. This is not someone else's fight, it is our fight as well."


A drug dealer accused of shooting dead a man in Sheffield has told jurors he is "completely innocent" and was watching TV at the time of the killing.

Jama Ahmed, 26, is on trial alongside Asif Yousaf, 33, charged with the murder of Jordan Thomas, 22, in 2014.
Mr Thomas was shot twice in the chest as he sat in a car on Derek Dooley Way.
Mr Ahmed, from Sheffield, denies murdering Mr Thomas, saying there had "never been a problem" between them. Mr Yousaf, from Sheffield, denies murder.
Prosecutors say Mr Thomas was shot by a lone gunman at about 22:15 GMT on 21 December in an attack linked to the fatal stabbing of Mubarak Ali in 2011 by Mr Thomas's cousin James Knowles.
It is alleged the man got out of a burgundy Mitsubishi Shogun and fired two shots at Mr Thomas and a third at driver Neshaun Ferguson.
Mr Ahmed, however, told Sheffield Crown Court that on the day of the killing he had been watching DVDs at an address in Broomhall before going home.
Asked if he knew who had killed Mr Thomas he said: "I would love to know. I'm completely innocent."
Mr Ahmed and Mr Thomas were allegedly involved in an altercation between two groups outside a Sheffield nightclub two days before the attack.
Mr Ahmed told the court he had been at the nightclub to sell drugs but was not involved in the incident.
He said he and Mr Thomas had played for the same football team and there had "never been a problem", but was aware that some people he knew "did not like anyone related to James Knowles".
Co-defendant Mr Yousaf told the court on Tuesday he had bought the car used in the shooting in exchange for crack cocaine but said he was not in the vehicle when the shooting happened.
He said he had given the vehicle to Mr Ahmed in Philadelphia Gardens, Upperthorpe, however, Mr Ahmed told the court that he had not been to that address, saying Mr Yousaf was lying.
Mr Ahmed, of Broomhall Place, and Mr Yousaf, of Violet Bank Road, also deny the attempted murder of Mr Ferguson.
Yousaf's father, Mohammed Yousaf, 61, also of Violet Bank Road, denies attempting to pervert the course of justice.
The trial continues.


Watford have announced that former Inter Milan boss Walter Mazzarri will become head coach from 1 July after the departure of Quique Sanchez Flores.

The 54-year-old Italian, who has also managed Sampdoria and Napoli, has signed a three-year contract at Vicarage Road.
Spaniard Flores left after less than a year with the Premier League side.
Watford finished 13th in a season where they also lost in the FA Cup semi-finals to Crystal Palace.
Mazzarri is the Hornets' eighth manager in the past four years.
Watford's chief executive Scott Duxbury told the club's official website: "Walter has been the target of a number of approaches for his services, so we're delighted to secure him as head coach here at Watford.
"We're thoroughly looking forward to working with such a highly regarded coach, with the progress and development of the club always remaining the highest priority."
After the departure of 51-year-old Flores, it soon became clear that Mazzari was the preferred choice of the Pozzo family, who took over at Watford in 2012.
Mazzarri won the Coppa Italia with Napoli in 2012 and took the club to second in Serie A the following season.
He joined Inter on a two-year contract in May 2013 and the club were fifth in his first season.
But he has been out of work since leaving the San Siro in November 2014, having been sacked with the club ninth in the table, 12 points off the top.


A carnival event is due to be held in Reading, after the town's long-running Caribbean carnival was scrapped for a second year running.

Reading Carnival of the World is set to feature international music, performances and a procession in the town centre in August.
Organiser Mary Genis said it would "celebrate the diversity of Reading".
A carnival, run by Reading's Caribbean community since 1977, has faced financial problems in recent years.
The new event planned for 20 August has organised by not-for-profit organisation CultureMix Art, with backing from the Arts Council, and is part of the town's Year of Culture.
It will include a performance stage in Broad Street, along with music and a carnival procession with West African, Asian and South American influences.
The Reading Carnival, held annually at Prospect Park, attracted up to 5,000 people, but was axed in 2013 and 2015 while a stripped-back event was held in 2014. This year's event was scrapped in April with organisers blaming a lack of funding.


Nearly Â£400,000 has been spent in a bid to avoid public confusion over a new system for the way GCSEs are graded in England.

From this summer, GCSE results will begin switching from letter grades such as A* or G to a numerical system, with 9 the highest grade.
The government wants to "promote understanding" of the new grades.
The exams watchdog Ofqual says explaining the new system to the public is "essential".
In a parliamentary written answer, ministers revealed that more than Â£380,000 would be spent on information for students, parents and employers about the new 9 to 1 grades.
This summer will see pupils getting their English and maths results in numerical grades, with other subjects to convert over the next few years.
It will end letter grades for GCSEs, used since the 1980s.
This switch will apply only in England, with GCSEs awarded in Wales and Northern Ireland to retain their letter grades.
The question about spending on the new format was asked by Labour's former shadow education secretary, Lucy Powell.
She warned that the changes could cause "chaos and confusion" and labelled the switch to number grades as an "expensive vanity project".
"With just weeks to go before GCSE results are announced, parents, business and pupils remain unclear on what these new GCSE grades mean in practice," she said.
The new grading system is intended to send a signal that these are a different type of GCSE, moving away from coursework and modules to results based on final exams.
But there have been warnings over confusion in what will constitute a pass in the new grading arrangements.
There are going to be two different pass grades - a grade 4 as a "standard" pass and a grade 5 as a "strong" pass.
Universities which can require a pass at maths and English GCSE as a requirement have varied in which "pass" they are accepting.
Head teachers' leader Malcolm Trobe said pupils had a good grasp of the new grading system but he thought parents would be less well informed and that employers would be even less aware of the changes.
Professor Jo-Anne Baird, director of the department of education, St Anne's College, University of Oxford, said the cost of the information campaign had been a "drop in the ocean" in the wider costs of exam changes.
"The costs of the examination reforms have been colossal and it is questionable whether it has been worthwhile," said Prof Baird.
"Our examination system is in a perpetual state of reform, caused by different ministers wanting to put their stamp on the system."
A spokesman for Ofqual said 600,000 students would have taken the new GCSEs this summer and it was "essential to communicate these changes to a wide audience, including students, teachers, parents and employers".
"The money has been spent on the development of original films, which have been viewed around 10 million times, as well as printed materials and social media advertising.
"Independent research conducted on our behalf indicates that understanding of the new grades and the reforms has increased as a result of the work we have done."


An elderly pedestrian has died days after she was hit by a car.

Anne Tregoning suffered serious injuries when she was struck by a Citroen Berlingo in Stanley, County Durham, on Thursday.
The 89-year-old retired nurse was taken to Newcastle's Royal Victoria Infirmary but died at the weekend.
Durham Police has appealed for anyone who saw the incident at about 18:30 GMT, near East Stanley Methodist Church, to contact the force.


Until now, the person charged with inspecting the police in England and Wales has always been an ex-copper.

Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) is supposed to be independent of government and the police - its boss technically an appointment of the Crown. But the reality has always been that the home secretary chooses the Chief Inspector of Constabulary and that individual is drawn from the senior ranks of the police service.
Until now.
Today the Home Office announced that its preferred choice for the job is Tom Winsor, the "civilian" lawyer whose recent proposals for reforming police pay and conditions have gone down as well with ordinary coppers as a vomiting drunk in the custody suite.
The committee representing police inspectors in England and Wales has said the decision "simply beggars belief". Matt Cavanagh from the left-leaning think-tank IPPR, said it was a "risky if not reckless choice", a "provocative" appointment which could damage the reputation of the inspectorate.
The central argument seems to be that only someone with years of experience of policing can do the job. Paul McKeever from the Police Federation has said: "If ever there was a need for sagacious advice from someone with a profound understanding of policing, it is now."
The subtext here is that officers would dearly like the head of the HMIC to be someone who would defend the police service against the impact of some of the government's reform proposals. What they appear to have got as the new chief inspector is the very man who came up with the reforms in the first place.
The fact that Theresa May has named such a controversial outsider sends a powerful message to the service that the government is committed to significant reform and, after being heckled and booed at the Police Federation conference last month, is content to take on the rank and file.
But is there some truth in the charge that only an insider can have the "deep and profound understanding of policing" required for the job? Or might Home Office minister Lynne Featherstone be right in suggesting: "The fact that he is not from a police background is innovative and it may be brilliant."?
Arguments for and against external appointments to public positions were presented to the House of Commons Public Administration Select Committee a couple of years ago.  The subsequent report, "Outsiders and Insiders", concluded that the senior civil service "should take appropriate measures to reduce its reliance on external recruitment, not least because outside appointees do not appear to perform better than career civil servants - despite being paid more".
They heard from the then Cabinet Secretary Sir Gus O'Donnell who argued that bringing in new skills and thinking was enormously valuable. "Getting people from a wide range of backgrounds, the private sector and wider public sectorâ€¦ is really good for us," he argued. "We should not sit back and say that we should have only talent that we grow internally."
However, the committee also heard from the Ofsted chair Zenna Atkins, who said outside recruits found it very difficult not to do one of two things: "One is to go native and just go along with what the public sector has done and to buy into, 'that's the way it's done here'â€¦ or the other thing is you are continually banging your head against the wall and are not able to navigate your way through the way things are done."
The report produced a table which was said to provide "some slight support for the belief that external appointees on the whole perform less well than internal recruits".
However, if the aim is to challenge the norms and procedures of an organisation, to stir things up a bit, then experience from business suggests an outside appointment can have transformative effects.
When Adam Crozier was appointed chief executive of the Football Association in 2000, there were plenty of raised eyebrows. He was the opposite of what was expected for the governing body of England's national game - young (35), Scottish and with no experience of business in football.
In his short tenure, Crozier is credited with turning the FA into a much younger and more commercial organisation. He made enemies and his approach had its critics, but others argue that only someone completely outside the old Lancaster Gate cabal could have pushed through such needed change.
Last month, the debt-laden tour operator Thomas Cook appointed an industry outsider as its new chief executive. Harriet Green's background is in electronic components distribution. Again, the aim seems to be to shake things up. The board said she had been hired because of her "extensive experience of driving business transformation and change programmes".
The question of who should be the next director general of the BBC also sees a split between those who want an experienced internal "steady-as-she-goes" candidate and those demanding more radical change pushed through by someone from outside the corporation.
So the appointment of Tom Winsor as Chief Inspector of Constabulary, should it happen, signals something more profound than ministers putting two fingers up to belligerent bobbies. It is strong evidence that this government wants transformative cultural change in the police service. Expect fireworks.


A 12-year-old was left reeling with surprise after catching a "monster" pike in the River Wye.

Thomas landed the 4ft (1.2m) fish on a stretch of the river near his home in Powys.
His father, Louis Macdonald-Ames, said the pike's head "was bigger than Thomas's".
The fish was not weighed but the pair have estimated it could rival the biggest pike ever recorded from the Wye, caught in 1910, which was 37lb.
Thomas, from Three Cocks, near Glasbury, said: "After a while my arms were starting to hurt so I was glad when we got the fish to the bank. It's the biggest fish I have ever caught."
His father, who works for the Wye & Usk Foundation which looks after the river habitat, said: "Several times the pike took off across the river and, at one stage, I thought I might have to take over the fishing rod.
"I'm proud to say he toughed it out and it was amazing to see what was on the end of the line when the fish finally came in close. We knew it was big, but not that big."


Record crowds packed into the stands of Worthing United football club to watch a match dedicated to two of its players who died in the Shoreham air crash.

Matt Grimstone and Jacob Schilt were among the 11 who died on 22 August.
The club normally plays in front of about 100 people, but more than a thousand tickets were sold for Sunday's FA Vase match against East Preston.
Manager Nigel Geary said people wanted to pay their respects.
He said not everyone could attend the funerals and people wanted to come to the match and show their support.
Vice-chairman Mark Sanderson said it had been a remarkable day and the club had never seen anything like it.
Memorial scarves were printed with the names of the two players, and 2,500 programmes were produced.
Proceeds are being used to pay for a permanent tribute to the players, who were travelling together to a game when a vintage jet crashed on to the A27 in West Sussex.
An initial report into the Shoreham air show disaster said the Hawker Hunter jet showed "no abnormal indications" during its flight.
Andy Hill, the 51-year-old pilot, remains in a serious but stable condition in hospital.


The owner of a fishing boat on which two men died from carbon monoxide poisoning has pleaded guilty to breaching safety laws.

Mark Arries, 26, from Blyth, and Edward Ide, 21, from Amble, died while the boat was moored in Whitby harbour in January 2014.
The men used a gas cooker for heating as they slept on the boat.
Timothy Bowman-Davies, of Haverfordwest in Pembrokeshire, admitted failing to ensure the boat was operated safely.
The 44-year-old also admitted failing to ensure equipment on the ship, called the Eshcol, was maintained efficiently
Read more about this and other stories from across Yorkshire
A trial of issue before a judge is being held at Leeds Crown Court to decide if he knew the crew were using the cooker for heating.
The two fishermen began work on the boat on 8 January 2014 and returned to Whitby in the early hours of 15 January.
Mr Bowman-Davies's son Jake, then 15, was working on one of the other boats and found the bodies of his colleagues.
"There was like a vapoury smoke, there was no air, that's how it felt," he told the court.
He found both men in their bunks and said the grill of the gas cooker had been on.
He denied earlier witness statements in which he told police he and and his father knew the cooker was being used as a heater in "short bursts", insisting neither were aware of the cooker being used as a heater.
The Marine Accident Investigation Branch found the boat had no carbon monoxide alarm, heaters did not work and the cooker had not been installed correctly.
It also found the management of the vessel was ineffective.
An inquest jury in 2014 returned verdicts of death by misadventure and the coroner also said he would be recommending that boats were fitted with alarms.
The hearing continues.


Golf cannot be complacent about the possibility of being hit by a betting scandal, says the sport's governing body.

In the wake of recent problems in tennis and cricket, new R&A chief executive Martin Slumbers has admitted that inappropriate gambling is a subject moving towards the top of the agenda for golf's authorities.
The 54-year-old spoke to BBC Sport in his first major interview since taking over at the St Andrews-based governing body last September.
He was cautiously optimistic regarding golf's return to the Olympics, said the game must do better at attracting young players and addressed the issue of controversial US presidential candidate Donald Trump's ownership of Ayrshire golf-course Turnberry.
His comments regarding the hot topic of betting irregularities were most striking. Only last week European Tour chief executive Keith Pelley said there was absolutely no concern over the issue in golf. Slumbers, though, is striking a more vigilant note.
"We have not been made aware of any evidence yet of the type of issues currently being discussed happening in the game of golf," Slumbers said.
"That doesn't mean we are complacent about it. Anything where you have inappropriate betting actually undermines that sport. So it's something we are keeping our eye on very closely and we are looking at the implications."
There are already protocols in place requiring European Tour players to sign a declaration preventing them from betting on golf. This also applies at The Open.
Slumbers believes the authorities are well equipped to police the issue. But in light of the recent publicity in tennis, among other sports, he admitted the subject was a high priority for golf bosses.
"I think the events of the last few months will bring it more to the top of those agendas, yes," he said.
"If there was evidence starting to build of inappropriate betting, the game is run by some very responsible and sensible people who have the game at heart and I'm sure will do the right thing. We are certainly keeping this under careful attention.
"I'm sure if we have to go further, we will go further because inappropriate betting will undermine sport," Slumbers added.
The former banking executive, who worked alongside the retired Peter Dawson during his last six months in the job, takes over as golf prepares to return to the Olympics in Rio this summer.
It is being viewed as a massive opportunity for the sport to grow on a global scale. So, how much will the sport be strengthened by returning to the Games?
"Hopefully very much stronger," Slumbers said. "I'm always amazed every four years when the Olympics comes along at what sports I watch. So there will be a lot of people out there who will say 'right let's watch the golf,' and that exposure to hundreds of millions or billions of people watching the Olympics could be fantastic.
"But we mustn't be complacent, either. There are probably a number of sports that have been in the Olympics that haven't had a long-term surge in participation from it.
"We are now focused on two things. One is making sure the event itself is a great success, and the IGF [International Golf Federation] is doing some huge work in that regard, and then how do we build on that through to 2020 and beyond?"
For Slumbers the biggest challenge is "to actually capitalise on the Olympic enthusiasm that will arise".
"But we mustn't let that enthusiasm die," he warns.
Slumbers is also aware that the enthusiasm for golf among the younger generation should not be dimmed by an old-fashioned stuffiness that he accepts remains prevalent in the sport.
He suggests tournament's like last week's event in Abu Dhabi, where Rickie Fowler edged home against the likes of Rory McIlroy, can have a big impact.
"That's a great image that I think attracts a lot of young people," he said. "I think this is a sport that could be, and should be, more relevant to younger people to come out and play.
"Part of my role is to try and encourage and develop more accessibility for youngsters to be able to play golf.
"We can always do things better. There are many facilities out there that are attracting that young gentleman or young lady. But can we do that better? Yes we can."
For a moment he sounds like US president Barack Obama - which brings us neatly to the R&A's relationship with the man who wants to be Obama's successor in the White House.
Donald Trump owns Turnberry which last hosted the Open in 2009. The US presidential candidate is pouring £200m into the project but is nowhere near as politically correct as golf is trying to be at the moment.
Following the outrage sparked by the presidential candidate's comments on Mexicans and Muslims, can golf do business with him?
"The important thing for us is to focus on what is the right thing for golf," Slumbers said. "Politics is something that we should not comment on and we should not stray into.
"My belief is that golf should be open to all, regardless of gender, race, nationality or religion. I think that's a strength of this game."
But is that at odds with taking The Open to a Trump-owned Turnberry? Slumbers dodged the question by stating the championship could not go to the Ayrshire course until 2022 at the earliest.
"That's something we don't have to consider for a couple of years yet," he said. "The world may change quite a lot in the next six years and we will consider it at that point."
Slumbers is clearly not afraid of change, as he indicated with his response to the European Tour last week relaxing its dress rules, allowing players to wear shorts in practice.
This move couldn't happen at this year's Open because the conditions of entry have already been set, but might occur at a later date.
"I don't think golf should be frightened of making sure it is modern and relevant," Slumbers said. "The climatic conditions of the Middle East were slightly different to Scotland in July.
"I think it would be wrong in the tournament itself. The real balance is preserving the integrity, the history of the game but also staying modern and relevant.
"So I think it is something we will keep talking about, maybe for practice days for the future."
That such an issue could be considered in the famous old R&A clubhouse offers further evidence of a modernising shift that, dare I say it, is worth betting will accompany Slumbers' tenure at St Andrews.


Leyton Orient owner Barry Hearn is in talks with Italian businessman Francesco Becchetti over the sale of his shareholding in the club.

Sports promoter Hearn, 66, took over the O's during the 1994-95 season.
His decision follows the club's defeat on penalties by Rotherham in last season's League One play-off final.
Becchetti, who is the head of the Becchetti Energy Group, has previously been linked to takeovers of Reading and Italian Serie B side Bologna.
A statement on the Orient website confirmed that Hearn was in talks to sell the Matchroom Stadium outfit.
"The sale is subject to due diligence and Football League approval and the club will not be making any further comment at this stage," the statement read.
Dagenham-born Hearn, who first attended an Orient game aged 11, is also the chairman of World Snooker and the Professional Darts Corporation.
Orient were struggling financially when he took over the club, but have since established themselves in League One.
Hearn had wanted Orient to move from Brisbane Road to the Olympic Stadium, but the London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC) appointed West Ham United as their preferred bidders and, in March 2013, the Premier League side were awarded the right to occupy the stadium.
Hearn wants Orient to groundshare with West Ham and has been seeking a judicial review of the bidding process.
Becchetti, 47, is listed as a director of Leyton Orient Holdings Limited, which was registered as a private limited company at Companies House earlier this month.


Scotland's first minister has said her "thoughts and good wishes" are with RAF personnel involved in air strikes targeting the Islamic State group.

But Nicola Sturgeon also stressed that she remained "deeply troubled" by UK military action in Syria.
Ms Sturgeon was speaking after six Typhoon jets left RAF Lossiemouth in Moray to join air strikes against IS.
In a Commons vote on Wednesday, all but two of Scotland's 59 MPs opposed targeting IS in Syria as well as Iraq.
But MPs voted by 397 to 223 overall in favour of extending military action
Four Tornado jets based at RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus carried out the first UK air strikes in Syria just hours after the vote, when they targeted an IS-controlled oil field in eastern Syria.
The Cypriot base has been bolstered by the six Typhoons from Lossiemouth, which landed at Akrotiri at about 14:20, as well as a further two Tornados from RAF Marham in Norfolk.
An RAF Airbus A400M tactical transport aircraft has been sent from Lossiemouth to Cyprus with about 100 engineers and ground staff to service the fighter jets.
Speaking at the start of first minister's questions at Holyrood, Ms Sturgeon made clear that she still opposed military action in Syria.
She told the Holyrood chamber: "I am sure we are all mindful that British service personnel, many of them based at Lossiemouth, are now in action over Syria.
"Not withstanding my opposition to this action, my thoughts and my good wishes are very much with them at this time."
"I remain deeply troubled by the decision of the UK government to take the country into conflict with no strategy, no exit plan and against the wishes of the overwhelming majority of Scotland's MPs."
The SNP said a petition on its website opposing air strikes in Syria had been signed more than 70,000 times.
During a 10-hour debate in the Commons on Wednesday, Prime Minister David Cameron argued that action against the "medieval monsters" of IS was legal and would "keep our country safe".
Mr Cameron cautioned that the campaign against IS would take time, saying "we're going to need to be patient and persistent".
He added: "It is complex and it is difficult what we are asking our pilots to do, and our thoughts should be with them and their families as they commence this important work."
Only two Scottish MPs - Conservative Scottish Secretary David Mundell and his Liberal Democrat predecessor Alistair Carmichael - backed military action in Syria.
All 54 of the SNP's MPs voted against, as did Michelle Thomson and Natalie McGarry, who are both currently suspended from the party, and Labour's only MP in Scotland, Ian Murray.
Syrian Manhal Alnasser - who is now living in Scotland - is concerned that if the so-called Islamic State were left as the only group fighting President Assad it could "backfire", and "encourage rebels" to join up.
He said: "The Russians are targeting rebel areas in the country, which will leave ISIS as the main group fighting against the Syrian regime. For Syrians, the main problem at the moment is the regime."
Mr Alnasser still has family, including three sisters, living in Syria, who are on the outskirts of the war-torn city of Homs.
He said that he was "lost for words" to describe the situation they were living in.
"It's like going back in time 100 years - there's no electricity, you have to grow your own food, there's no school, there's no education and you live in fear every day for your life."
Read more here
Labour is split over the issue, with 66 Labour MPs siding with the government in backing military action, including shadow foreign secretary Hilary Benn.
Mr Benn was applauded, particularly by Conservative MPs, when he urged his own side to "confront this evil" posed by IS.
But Scottish Labour leader Kezia Dugdale told the Scottish Parliament she, like the party's UK leader Jeremy Corbyn, was opposed to air strikes.
She said: "Like the first minister, I did not support extending air strikes into Syria. However, with British forces now involved we must come together to support the brave men and women in our armed forces."
Scottish Tory leader Ruth Davidson expressed her "gratitude to the brave service personnel who will be involved in this necessary military action in Syria".
She added: "As too often before, their selfless efforts abroad do all ensure and help keep us living safely at home."


Dundee have signed Falkirk striker Rory Loy on a pre-contract as manager Paul Hartley begins his squad rebuilding for next season.

The 26-year-old has scored 11 times this campaign and will join the club in June after agreeing a three-year deal.
Loy signed for the Bairns from Carlisle in 2013 after previous spells at Rangers, Dunfermline and St Mirren.
He was nominated for the PFA Championship Player of the Year award last season after netting 21 times.


Fast bowler Katherine Brunt returns to the England squad after injury for the one-day and Twenty20 series with India and South Africa over the next month.

Yorkshire's Brunt, 29, has not featured since back trouble ended her Ashes-winning tour of Australia in January.
Berkshire opener Heather Knight, 23, is appointed vice-captain to Charlotte Edwards for all three series.
Uncapped Nottinghamshire seamer Sonia Odedra wins her first call-up for a one-off Test with India on 13 August.
Left-arm seamer Natasha Farrant is also fit again and is in the squad for the three T20 internationals against South Africa in September.
Also in the squad for all three series is Warwickshire spinner Rebecca Grundy, who played in the Women's World Twenty20 earlier this year but is uncapped in the Test or ODI format.
The three one-day matches against India will form the first round of the new Women's Championship, a qualifying event for the 2017 World Cup.
Australia, England, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, West Indies, South Africa and New Zealand will play three one-day games against each other over the next two years, with points awarded for each match and the top four gaining automatic qualification for the World Cup.
Sussex's Georgia Elwiss has been ruled out for the rest of the summer with a broken hand.
Laura Marsh, who has had an extended lay-off from international cricket following major shoulder surgery during the winter, will lead an England academy squad of 14 which also includes Fran Wilson and Danielle Wyatt.
They will play a two-day match against India at Loughborough starting on 7 August, a 50-over match against India at Harrogate on 18 August and T20s against South Africa at Southend on 29 and 30 August.
England squad: Charlotte Edwards (capt), Heather Knight (vice capt), Tammy Beaumont, Katherine Brunt (ODIs & T20s only), Kathryn Cross, Natasha Farrant (T20s only), Lydia Greenway, Rebecca Grundy, Jenny Gunn, Danielle Hazell, Amy Jones (wk), Sonia Odedra (Test match only), Natalie Sciver, Anya Shrubsole, Sarah Taylor (wk), Lauren Winfield.


Hundreds of people have turned out in Helen's Bay in County Down to mark the 100th anniversary of the Gallipoli landings.

More than 130,000 soldiers lost their lives during the Allied attack on Ottoman forces.
Gallipoli was one of the bloodiest battles of World War One. In total, nearly 25,000 British and Irish soldiers were killed.
A cannon was fired during Saturday's event to remember those who died.
One of the organisers of the event, Pastor Brian Madden, said: "Many who went out didn't come back home again and I think it's important that we do remember those people.
"I know there's events taking place all around the world now and they call it Anzac day and they remember and mourn in Australia and New Zealand, but I think it's important when you remember 3,000 Irish men died in the battle as well, that we do commemorate it here in Ireland."


Trainer Jim Best, who was given a four-year ban, will have his case reheard after the British Horseracing Authority issued an apology.

Best was found guilty of telling jockey Paul John not to let two horses run as fast as possible.
But the BHA admitted to a "fairness" issue in its disciplinary process.
The authority used solicitor Matthew Lohn as chairman of its disciplinary panel when he was being paid by the regulator to advise on other matters.
A BHA spokesman said it takes "full responsibility" and apologised for "the fact that the non-disclosure of Mr Lohn's other paid work created an appearance of bias which led to the need for a rehearing".
"While there was no suggestion of any actual bias in this case, the BHA now accepts that it was an error not to disclose details of Mr Lohn's other paid work," the spokesman added.
Best has denied any wrongdoing.
Chief Executive Nick Rust said the authority would make a full statement once proceedings are concluded.
"While the BHA's disciplinary panels do not constitute judicial proceedings - we appoint members to disciplinary panels and we pay them to carry out their duties - our processes must not only be fair, but, particularly relevant in this case, be seen to be fair," he said.


The Giant's Causeway Visitor Centre has been featured in a new stamp collection launched by Royal Mail on Friday.

The photo used was taken by amateur photographer Mark McCall from Lisburn, who said he was "delighted" his image was used.
The set celebrates 10 buildings that represent the "renaissance of contemporary architecture" in the UK.
The Â£18.5m visitor centre opened in 2012 and was inspired by the Causeway's 40,000 hexagonal basalt stones.
In 1986, Unesco declared the Giant's Causeway to be a World Heritage Site.
Mr McCall told BBC's Evening Extra programme he had taken the photo in 2013 when he was out for a walk on the north coast.
"I was annoying my better half by dropping down every five minutes to take pictures," he said.
"I nearly didn't take that picture as but as I passed by it the shadows were long and the sky was clear and I had to run back to take one last shot.
"I posted the pictures online and last summer I found an email in my spam folder, asking me if I would be interested in allowing it to be used it for a stamp.
"Its an amazing piece of architecture - there's just something about that building that I always come back to - it's the shape, how it reflects the stones of the Causeway.
"When I look back at my favourite photos they are always the ones with strong lines so I think that's what attracted me to it."
Royal Mail told Mark they had looked at a few images of the building but kept coming back to his. Last November they told him his picture would be used but he has had to keep it a secret until now.
"I am delighted and I'm so glad to be representing this wee land," he added.
"In a hundred years time when I'm not here, someone might have my picture in their stamp collection. That'll be my bit of immortality".
The past two decades has seen a surge in the construction of new public buildings in the UK.
Royal Mail said the images used "capture the distinctive lines and shapes of the structures that have become famous landmarks renowned across the world".
The special stamp set also features:
Philip Parker, Stamp Strategy Manager, Royal Mail, said: "These new stamps celebrate visionary buildings which combine stunning architecture with great engineering."


Conservative peer and former deputy prime minister Lord Heseltine has told the BBC that he thinks the UK will join the euro "if it survives".

The pro-European politician, recently appointed as a government adviser, told the Daily Politics Britain had "failed" to resist European integration.
Lord Heseltine said European countries would "cling on" to the euro.
The eurozone faced a "crisis" but he said it was a "very Eurosceptic view" to see the euro as a "failed project".
Asked if he thought the UK would adopt the single currency, he said: "If it survives, and my guess is it will survive, my guess is in the future - it won't be this week or next week or next year - we will do so, because the whole process of Europeanisation we have resisted and we have failed at every turn.
"If you look at the history of it, we were asked to lead it and we refused."
The peer served as a cabinet minister in the 1980s before resigning and later challenging Margaret Thatcher for the Conservative leadership - a challenge that triggered the end of her premiership in 1990.
Lord Heseltine, who was also deputy prime minister during the latter part of John Major's time in Downing Street, said: "Every time we've had these arguments... it's always turned out to be unworkable from our point of view."
David Cameron said last December there was "absolutely no prospect of joining the euro" while he was prime minister.
Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg, whose Lib Dems are the most pro-European of the three largest UK parties, said in September he thought it was very unlikely that "we will see this country entering the euro during my political lifetime".
Labour leader Ed Miliband told the BBC last year he thought joining the euro would be "very, very unlikely... I don't think it's going to happen... I can't see it in the foreseeable future".


A hospital has urged people to avoid going to its accident and emergency unit for the third time in six months.

The Royal Lancaster Infirmary has again blamed "a significant surge in demand" for the problem.
It comes three weeks after a similar appeal was issued over a lack of beds.
University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust said: "Yet again we are experiencing increased pressure in our A&E department at the RLI."
A trust spokesman said: "This is due mostly to patients that need to be admitted to our wards from A&E, however, due to delayed discharges and lack of bed availability, we are having to keep those patients in A&E."
Another appeal was made in March.
People who are not suffering serious illnesses or injuries are advised to dial the NHS advice line on 111, a pharmacist, Primary Care Assessment Centre, or GP.


Metal spikes have been placed along a country lane to deter 4x4 drivers from using it, a countryside driving group has claimed.

Darren Henson, from North Wales Green Lane Association (Glass), said 12 metal spikes had been recovered from an ancient lane known as Whitestones near Plas Nantyr, Llangollen.
He said it could "endanger life", with ramblers and horse riders using it.
North Wales Police said it was aware of reports of spikes.
A spokeswoman added they had not received a formal complaint and the council was looking into it.
Members of Glass, which works to protect unsurfaced ancient public roads  and promote sensible driving in the countryside, raised funds to purchase metal detectors after one vehicle received three punctures two weeks ago.
Mr Henson said: "There's no excuse to put these in the lanes. It could endanger life.
"We're not doing any harm. There are always going to be people who go off-piste and leave gates open but we're the people who have a problem with those people too. We're on their side.
"Some people just don't want us driving there.
"For us [4x4 drivers] its an inconvenience but if dogs or horses step on it, it'll be a different case. If a horse stood on it, it could be put down and who knows about the rider."


Mushers and their dogs have begun gathering in the Highlands ahead of the 34th Aviemore Sled Dog Rally.
The Siberian Husky Club of Great Britain helps to organise the event, which includes races near the shores of Loch Morlich.
This year's rally will be held on Saturday and Sunday.


The average household water and sewerage bill in England and Wales is to rise by 3.5% over the next year, regulator Ofwat has said.

Households will pay an average of £388 from April 2013 to March 2014.
Ofwat chief executive Regina Finn said that she understood that households were facing financial pressures.
But she said that the increase, half a percentage point higher than the rate of inflation, was not as high as the water companies had wanted.
"Back in 2009, companies wanted bills rises of 10% above inflation. That didn't chime with what customers told us they wanted, so we said they could only increase bills in line with inflation," Ms Finn said.
"We understand that there is huge pressure on household incomes, and any rise is unwelcome. Inflation is driving these increases."
"We will make sure customers get value for money and if companies fall short in delivering their investment promises, we will take action."
The new charges will vary for households depending on their supplier and whether they have a water meter.
On average, households will see their water bill rise by about £13 for the year from April.
Thames Water will see the biggest percentage rise in water and sewerage bills with an increase of 5.5%, leaving households with an average bill of £354, according to Ofwat.
Other customers to see larger than average rises include those of Southern Water, with bills rising by 5.3% with an average payment of £449. Households supplied by Wessex Water will face an average bill of £478 - an increase of 4.9%.
The increased bills will contribute to investment programme worth about £25bn between 2010 and 2015, the regulator added.
Those supplied by South West Water will see bills fall by 7.3% after the government pledged contributions to reduce each household's bill by £50. However, water and sewerage bills in the region remain the highest in the country, with households paying an average of £499.
Last year, prices rose by 5.7%, owing to the higher level of inflation.
However, the Consumer Council for Water, a watchdog which represents customers, suggested that this inflation link had allowed companies to make excessive returns.
"Water companies are making higher profits than expected and they need to give some of this back to their customers," said Dame Yve Buckland, who chairs the watchdog.
"They can limit their own prices or invest more money into services. They should not keep it all for shareholders and investors."