The government is using taxpayers' money to hire a PR agency to extol the virtues of EU membership and explain why the European constitution is a “success for Britain”.

A Foreign Office memo, obtained by the FT, reveals that the government is embarking this month on an “extensive communications campaign” before the referendum on the constitution, expected next year. As part of the offensive, it has hired Geronimo PR a London-based firm which has handled previous government campaigns to increase awareness about the “benefits” of EU membership and the “facts” about the constitutional treaty.