Dr Dennis Novy is an economist from the University of Warwick. He said: “The economic situation in Greece is not sustainable. With unemployment at around 25 per cent and GDP per capita down by far more than 10 per cent since 2009, many people in Greece have been going through terrible times.

“Ever since the global financial crisis broke out, the economic policies in Greece have been a main contributor to the dismal state of affairs. Greece has embarked on a tough austerity programme that has depressed the economy even further. This might have worked better if Greece had its own currency but as a member of the Eurozone, Greece was not able to devalue. Therefore, as the inevitable consequence, Greece now faces deflation.

“External forces are partly to blame for Greece's misery. Germany followed the script of a morality play instead of hard-nosed economics.

“The political costs of Greece leaving the Eurozone would be huge. If Greece goes, who would be next – Portugal, Spain, Italy? Instead, it is more likely that Greece will be granted a partial default or some of other form of debt relief.”

Note to Editors:

Dr Dennis Novy is available for interviews.

For TV interviews his availability is as follows:

• Thursday 22 January – available from Warwick via Globelynx camera from 12pm – 12:50pm.
• Friday 23 January - available from Warwick via Globelynx camera from 4:45pm – 6:30pm.
• Monday 26 January - free all day to attend any studio in the London area.

Issued by Issued by Lee Page, Communications Manager, Press and Policy Office, The University of Warwick. Tel: +44 (0)2476 574 255, Mob: +44 (0)7920 531 221. Email: l.page@warwick.ac.uk.

Contact:

Lee Page, Communications Manager

+44 (0)2476 574 255

+44 (0)7920 531 221

l.page@warwick.ac.uk