Greece Should be Prepared to Fill in €224m Gap in No-deal Brexit

The Hellenic Parliament. Photo Source: @PressParliament

And though the EU is reportedly considering delaying Brexit by up to two years, an analysis by the Brussels-based Bruegel Institute found that should the UK exit the Union as planned but with no deal in place, Greece stands to see a budget gap of 224 million euros through to 2020 as a result of no UK contributions to the EU’s overall budget as of March 30.

According to the analysis released last month by Bruegel Senior Fellow Zsolt Darvas, EU member states should be prepared to “fill the eventual gap” in the no-deal scenario in which the UK’s contribution stops March 29.

The Bruegel’s analyst notes that Brexit may very well result in a 16.5 billion euro hole in the 30 March 2019-31 December 2020 EU budget, or 0.066 percent of the Union’s gross national income (GNI).

Indicatively, the financial toll on Germany is expected to reach 4.2 billion euros, 2.9 billion euros on France, and 2.1 billion euros on Italy.

Malta and Cyprus are expected to suffer a smaller blow at 14 million euros and 25 million euros, respectively.

For further information on the Bruegel Institute’s analysis, press here.

At the same time, in view of the potential backlash of failed Brexit negotiations, senior EU officials are said to be exploring the possibility of offering the UK a two-year extension.

In London, meanwhile, Prime Minister Theresa May postponed yet again to March 12 a parliamentary vote on Brexit faced with pressure from senior government members to rule out a no-deal scenario.