Mr Venizelos said the following, "Greece's position within the euro area is a historic conquest of the country that cannot be put in doubt. This achievement by the Greek people cannot depend on a referendum."

Mr Venizelos added that the withheld 8bn-euros bailout aid should be released straight away despite eurozone leaders agreeing it should be withheld until after the referendum, which is expected to take place on December 4th.

There are fears that a 'no' vote will not only worsen the situation in Greece, but spread the problem to other eurozone countries like Italy and Spain.