EU Commission: EU Has Financial Backstops In Place If Needed

BRUSSELS (MNI) – The Eurozone has financial backstops in place if
they are needed, a European Commission spokesman said on Tuesday.

Speculation mounted on Monday and Tuesday that Ireland is poised to
accept a loan package from its European partners to aid its banking
sector and possibly help with its debt burden.

The country’s budget deficit will hit 32% of its GDP this year,
well beyond the EU’s stipulated 3% limit. Stripping out the banks, the
deficit is expected to be 11.9% of GDP, still the largest in the
Eurozone.

“This is a time for cool heads, this is a time for determination,” a
European Commission spokesman told reporters. “The financial backstops
are in place.”

“The basis of it all lies in member states themselves,” he said,
adding that the member states should redress their fiscal situations.

The comments came ahead of a regular meeting of Eurozone finance
ministers in Brussels later on Tuesday.

–Brussels: 0032 487 (0) 32 803 665, echarlton@marketnews.com

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