Eurozone raises €150bn to boost IMF lending
UK refuses to contribute now
By Simon Taylor
Brussels: Eurozone finance
ministers agreed today to provide €150 billion to boost the lending capacity of the International Monetary Fund to help tackle the eurozone
crisis. But the UK refused today to contribute to increasing the IMF's resources, saying it would only do so as part of a combined effort with the
G20 group of the world's richest and fastest growing economies.
Finance ministers from the 27 EU member states held a conference call today to
discuss how to raise up to €200 billion to increase the IMF's resources. Eurozone countries agreed at a summit on 9 December to hand over
€150 billion with a further €50bn supposed to come from non-eurozone countries.
The extra funds are to enable the IMF to increase
its lending to eurozone countries.
Ministers had hoped that the UK could be convinced to pay €30bn. But George Osborne, the UK's finance
minister, told his colleagues that the UK would consider making a contribution only in the context of the G20. The UK is opposed to paying to help
eurozone countries in financial difficulties, arguing that the eurozone should provide the funds to solve its own difficulties.
[European
Voice]
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