The British Prime Minister David Cameron has warned his fellow G8 leaders that they have to be prepared for a possible Greek withdrawal from the Eurozone.
Speaking at the G8 summit held at president Obama’s private retreat Camp David at the weekend, he warned that the upcoming elections could be the deciding factor in the nation’s withdrawal.
He said; “They can vote to stay in the euro-zone and meet their commitments, or they can vote to give up on their commitments and, in effect, give up on the euro-zone, I think the point that was very clear from the G-8 was that the euro-zone has to put in place the most robust contingency plans for both eventualities.” He added; ‘It’s up the Greeks how they arrange their election, what they do and don’t say, how people do and don’t vote but we’ve got to make sure it’s a moment of clarity and decisiveness for the euro-zone”
Many economists feel the same way as the British PM in calling for decisive action. The situation has dragged on for years and still no plan has been implemented by the European leaders. The European Council President Herman Van Rompuy and the European Union president have both said that no plans had been drawn up in regards of a Greek exit. Barroso said “Plan A was for Greece to stay in.”
Cameron replied by saying; “What would be bad for Greece, bad for Europe and bad for the world is if we just allowed the can to be kicked further down the road with an inconclusive outcome,” he said. “What’s required is decisiveness. There needs to be a resolution because it’s the lack of resolution that’s leading to a lack of confidence.”
The indecisiveness of the leaders over what to do next has caused many to say that the G8 summit was a failure. If Greece leaves and no plan is in place to absorb the blow then many of the other struggling euro economies could follow Greece down its path of hardship.
The Pound to Euro exchange rate is currently trading at 1.238
The Pound to US Dollar exchange rate is currently trading at 1.582
The Euro to US Dollar exchange rate is currently trading at 1.277
The Euro to Pound exchange rate is currently trading at 0.807
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