The only option

Greece’s leftist prime minister, Alexis Tsipras, yesterday submitted a set of proposals to international lenders which it is hoped will prevent the country’s default and the introduction of capital controls at Greek banks.

Tsipras did so in spite of strong resistance from key members of his coalition government and the SYRIZA party who have been pushing for a rift with the country’s international lenders and a return to Greece’s former currency, the drachma.

To be sure, the proposed measures will do little to spur much-needed growth. Instead of reducing the cost of the country’s sizable public sector and dealing with much-delayed social security reform, those measures will effectively punish individuals and businesses who have managed to keep their heads above water and who are supporting the real economy.

However, given the situation that Greece has found itself in, the dilemma was clear and the government’s choices extremely limited.