IT promises to be the party of the millennium.
All over the world champagne corks will be popping at the stroke of midnight on December 31, 1999, but not in Australia if Prime Minister John Howard has his way.
In a gesture that promises to earn him the title of party-pooper of the century, the Liberal leader has told Parliament Australia will officially usher in the third millennium 12 months later, on January 1, 2001.
The declaration has sent shock waves through a hedonistic society which, while rarely needing an excuse for a party, saw the turn of the century as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to embark on the biggest and most drunken of celebrations.
But Mr Howard has deemed otherwise and Australia will be seeing in the new millennium with a cup of cocoa.
While few people will agree with the decision, the fact is Mr Howard is probably right, basing his view on simple mathematical logic.