Chancellor: eurozone must protect its currency

THE eurozone is not doing enough to protect its currency, Chancellor George Osborne has said, appearing to suggest that the UK may not increase its funding to the International Monetary Fund for bailouts as a result.

Speaking on his tour of China, the Chancellor made it clear he believed the eurozone’s woes would be a major cause of the UK going back into recession if it is confirmed. He also said the 17 eurozone countries were failing to pool resources to protect their members.

Mr Osborne warned that quicker action on the Greek debt crisis was needed to tackle instability in the single currency and said: “We haven’t seen much evidence of the pooled resources needed by the euro to actually provide confidence to the market that they will stand by their own currency.

Mr Osborne reaffirmed that the government would be prepared to make extra funding available to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) alongside other G20 nations “if there is a strong case” but again stressed the cash must go to “countries, not currencies”.

“If I felt it was a decent request by the IMF, then, of course, I would be willing to go to parliament and make that request,” Mr Osborne told his Chinese hosts.

BUSINESS, PAGE 38