Eurozone Crisis: Greece slips past payment deadline

The prospect of a quick fix to the Greek problem together with €15.5bn in funds disappeared at midnight as the stakes were raised for the country and for the EU.

The left-wing government of prime minister Alexis Tsipras blinked first when it sent new proposals to Brussels, but its demands for an extension of the programme and debt relief met with a swift no.

As a result, Greece will officially be in arrears in repayments to the IMF, and its second bailout programme comes to an end, having been extended for four months while the Athens government sought better terms.