Thursday June 7, 2012
By Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator, Thursday June 7, 2012
Harper says time running out to tackle eurozone’s woes
Prime Minister Stephen Harper says Europe has so far avoided a “catastrophic event” that could throw the global markets into turmoil, but that a “broader game plan” is needed to deal with the economic woes plaguing the continent.
“Although our European friends have done a great job of avoiding a catastrophic event over the past four years, the fact is that we are now four years into this crisis and we do not have definitive solutions,” Harper said during an interview with CBC’s chief correspondent, Peter Mansbridge.
Harper said the United States, facing its own financial crisis in 2008 and 2009, “decided to put all energies towards dealing with the crisis, they contained the crisis and reversed it. And the same thing needs to be done here.”
Speaking from London, where he attended the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations, Harper noted that many European countries are struggling with recession, sovereign debt crises and banking-sector woes.
The Bank of Canada said Tuesday that those problems have worsened in the past few weeks — so much so that they have prompted a “sharp deterioration” in global financial conditions. The latest crisis concerns the solvency of European banks, particularly those in Spain, but a Greek exit from the eurozone following mid-June elections also looms as a potential shock.
When asked how much room is on the runway, Harper said there is “still some room” but “we just can’t constantly deal with short-term problems — we’ve actually got to have a plan to make this a stable situation.” (Source: CBC News)
