Britain prepares for possible Greece exit from eurozone

The British government held a meeting of senior officials to discuss the impact on the country of possible Greek exit from the eurozone on Monday.

"Given uncertainty around Greece and the Euro, it was important I chair a meeting to ensure the Government is prepared for all eventualities," said prime minister David Cameron via his twitter account.

Nick Macpherson, head of the Treasury, Lowrie Kahn, the Treasury's director of financial stability, and the British central bank's international director Phil Evans attended the meeting.

The chancellor, George Osborne, was absent from the meeting as he was on his way to the G20 meeting in Istanbul.

British ministers believed that Greek inflation would take off and companies and banks would face acute financial difficulties if Greece abandoned the euro, according to British media.

But they expected the direct exposure of British banks to Greece was relatively small and some kind of compromise between Athens and other eurozone governments could be reached to keep Greece in the euro. Endit