Bank Of England Working On Greece 'Protection'

The governor of the Bank of England has told Sky News it has been working to ensure the UK is protected from the crisis in Greece.

In a wide-ranging interview with Business Presenter Ian King, Mark Carney said the Bank, along with its European counterparts, had made plans aimed at limiting the financial fallout should the Greek financial system implode.

He said that while the situation in Greece had "intensified", there was "very little exposure to UK banks" but it was best to be prepared.

Mr Carney was speaking as Athens indicated it was willing to accept bailout proposals , put forward by the country's creditors, but with conditions.

He said it was important Greek banks in the UK had the cash-flow they needed - or be shut and also reserved some praise for the president of the European Central Bank (ECB), Mario Draghi, for his handling of the crisis.

Mr Carney said there was nothing he would have done differently, as the ECB continues its support of the Greek banking system despite pressure to demand more collateral in return for the funding.

Hours earlier, the Chancellor George Osborne had spoken of the need for the UK to "prepare for the worst" .

Reacting to Greece becoming the first developed country to miss a payment to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Tuesday night, he said the actions of Greece's government had added to the crisis.

He said: "The failure of the Greek government to make its scheduled payments to the International Monetary Fund, and the expiry of Greece's financial assistance programme, have served only to add to the developing crisis in that country.

"It is vital now that the current uncertainty is resolved, whatever the Greek people decide, to ensure economic and financial stability across Europe.

"Britain's attitude to this developing crisis is clear: we hope for the best; but we prepare for the worst, and we stand ready to do whatever is necessary to protect our economic security at this uncertain time."

Ahead of the vote, most of the banks remained closed but there were scuffles as around a thousand branches opened on Wednesday to allow the elderly to receive pensions payments.

Everyone else was limited to withdrawing a maximum of €60 (£42) a day from cash machines.