Finland's eurosceptic opposition True Finns party said on Friday either debt-burdened countries like Greece should leave the euro zone or wealthier countries like Finland should get out to avoid the hefty costs of bailing out poorer ones.
The vehemently anti-euro rhetoric of True Finns leader Timo Soini helped his previously obscure party to make a strong showing in April elections among voters opposed to footing the bill for weaker economies like Greece, Ireland and Portugal.
"Those countries that cannot follow the rules, they must exit the system. Or the other option is that countries like Finland, Holland, maybe Germany leaving because they cannot pay anymore," Soini said in an interview with Reuters Insider.
"It is totally wrong that the Finnish taxpayers are carrying the burden of those countries who have cheated," he said. "With Greece it is clear that they cheated — some of their politicians."
Soini reierated his opposition to the current euro zone system for helping indebted governments.
"We are not, in our party, looking for an immediate exit. But we don't want any new mechanisms," he said, referring to the European rescue fund.
The True Finns finished third in general elections in April, but recent surveys show them neck and neck with the National Coalition party, which leads a pro-Europe coalition government.
The party has been a thorn in the government's side over its opposition to an EU rescue for Portugal and a longer-term EU bailout mechanism.
Soini also said it was more likely than not that he would run for president in January's election.
"A bit more likely," he said when asked in a Reuters interview about the chances of running for presidency. He said he was likely to make a final decision later this month.
The president, a role currently held by Tarja Halonen, does not have the political powers of prime minister who heads the government and represents Finland at the European Union. But it is still high profile with a role as military commander-in-chief.
Soini's criticism of bailouts have resonated among voters fed up with repeated bailouts while they face austerity at home, and the party's popularity has put pressure on Prime Minister Jyrki Katainen. Katainen has recently been demanding collateral as a condition for new loans to Greece.
