The Greek government
presented the reforms demanded by its lenders on Friday, but despite talks over
the weekend, eurozone creditors decided that the reform plans might not be
detailed enough to allow a much needed tranche of bailout funds to be released.
Without more aid, Greece could run out of cash while a €450m (£329m) payment
needs to be made to the International Monetary Fund.
To avoid the country leaving
eurozone, Greece’s reform programme must “add up” to ensure the financial stability of the country is restored. Due to low
liquidity, the heightened risks have led the ratings agency Fitch cut Greece’s
default ratings and unsecured currency bonds from B to CCC. Although Greece is
proposing to raise around €3bn (£2.2bn) of new tax revenue, including measures
to fight tax evasion and VAT fraud, as well as higher taxes on alcohol and
cigarettes. However, its lenders are concerned that it has not agreed to
deliver reforms to pensions and the labour market.
