Eurozone ‘not contemplating’ Greek exit

European commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis and Maltese finance minister Edward Scicluna say EU has no plan to push Greece out

Eurozone finance ministers have no intention to push Greece out of the monetary union, but tough talk is needed to keep the Greek government in check, finance minister Edward Scicluna said.

Addressing a press conference together with the European commissioner for the Euro and social dialogue Valdis Dombrovskis, Sciclina said "European finance ministers, including Greece, are not talking about a Greek exit “but talking about the consequences keeps everyone in check.

While adding that all stakeholders should refrain from extreme brinksmanship., Scicluna said that the Eurozone members should concentrate their efforts on achieving “convergence."

On his part, Dombrovskis said the EU is not contemplating a Greek exit from the Eurozone, but insisted that in recent weeks there has been a "positive change in attitude by the Greek government.

However, the former Latvian Prime Minister admitted that “there’s still a lot of work to be done to ensure completion of the programme” and bring the Greek economy back on track.

Financial instability has worsened Greece’s economic prospects which has seen

Dombrovskis is in Malta to discuss a number of reforms which Malta is undertaking, including pensions, energy, the quality of the labour force and competitiveness.

Noting Malta’s positive economic growth forecast, he said he was satisfied with Malta's economic performance which he said is substantially above the EU average.

"The Maltese government has addressed its fiscal problems and the budget deficit is within limits set by the EU," Dombrovskis added.