Ten years after the switch to the euro, Ballinrobe, Co. Mayo shopkeepers are now accepting Ireland’s former currency at a rate of £1 to €1.20, Joe.ie reported.

The move to ‘Embrace the Punt’ was originally a huge success in Clones, Co. Monaghan, where it aimed to boost the local economy by inducing people to spend the otherwise-useless punts they’d squirreled away or found under sofa cushions.

According to the Central Bank, IR£280 m still lie forgotten - and ripe for the spending in the few towns now accepting the old punts.

Forty businesses in Ballinrobe have signed on to the scheme, which will tackle the problem of change by handing out vouchers.

The original idea in Clones was inspired by a small Spanish village which in turn had reintroduced the Peseta to help its struggling economy.