Greece

Debate between Damian Green and George Osborne

Monday 29th June 2015 Commons Chamber

[Mr Osborne]

As I said in my statement, there are four branches of Greek banks in the UK. They have total deposits of about £200 million, which is, of course, a significant sum of money, but it is not that large compared with many other banking deposits, and the number of account holders is relatively low. I have made it very clear today that those account holders are not covered by the UK deposit protection scheme. I should also say that most of those individuals are not British citizens.

[Damian Green (Ashford) (Con)]

My right hon. Friend rightly points out that Britain’s increasing economic stability is necessary, not least to withstand economic shocks from elsewhere, such as that under discussion. Does he think that any further measures are necessary to protect British financial institutions that may be holding Greek debt, which will clearly be of decreasing value?

[Mr Osborne]

UK banking exposure to Greece is dramatically less than it was in 2012, when there were very real concerns about a Greek exit from the euro. That is also the case with regard to the exposure of French and German banks to Greece, which, of course, has a knock-on effect on the UK. As I have said, less than 1% of the core tier 1 capital of the UK banks is in Greek debt, and I think they are well prepared for whatever eventualities unfold.