The Greek finance minister has criticized a report on the economy which said Greece was likely to miss its budget targets this year due to months of delays in implementing austerity measures and a deeper than expected recession.
Evangelos Venizelos issued a statement on Thursday saying that the newly-created parliamentary panel which issued the document lacked the “knowledge, experience and responsibility” needed to compile reports on macroeconomic and fiscal prospects.
A financial report issued late on Wednesday by Greece’s special budget monitoring committee has warned the country’s parliament that its enormous debt is now out of control. Facing a ruinous recession, the country simply cannot keep up with interest payments on its near half-trillion dollar debt.
Politician and economist Petr Mach told RT that a key factor in the problems facing Greece is the Euro, arguing that it is economic nonsense to share a currency and not to share a fiscal policy, with a Greek departure from the Eurozone highly likely.
“Sharing fiscal policy, having one single ministry of finance is impossible at the EU, that is something no-one wishes,” he declared. “So that is the equation that has no other solution than enabling some countries to leave the Eurozone.”
Meanwhile, EU leaders continue to bicker over a second rescue package for Greece worth 213 billion euro, with Finland demanding collateral in return for its participation.