Spurred by Greece’s problems, the European Commission has said it is looking at creating an IMF-style European Monetary Fund to cope with future financial crises in the euro zone.

Olli Rehn, the European Economic and Monetary Affairs Commissioner, who has been cooperating closely with Greek politicians, said Paris, Berlin and Brussels are working on a rescue fund for euro zone countries in trouble. Rehn said: “We need to learn lessons from the crisis in Greece.”

Importantly, the idea has the backing of Wolfgang Schaeuble, the Finance Minister of the region’s biggest economy – Germany.

He said he favours a body with “the experience of the International Monetary Fund and similar executive powers.”

Such a fund would take time to set up so could not be used to assist Greece in its current fiscal problems.

However, Greece’s central bank governor George Provopoulos has said Athens would not need foreign help to deal with its debt problems, and will be able to borrow the money it needs on financial markets.

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