The Tories who are hoping Greece will go

There’s a new and growing faction in the Tory party. It includes several members of the Cabinet, various senior backbenchers and many of the brightest members of the 2010 intake. They are the Syriza Tories, united in their belief that the best thing for Britain and the government would be for the anti-bailout Syriza party to triumph in the Greek elections on Sunday.

Syriza, a party of the radical left, is hardly a natural bedfellow for the Tory right. But these ministers and MPs have come to the conclusion that the eurozone crisis must be brought to a head, and a Syriza victory would do exactly that. Indeed, the Chancellor appeared to endorse the logic of the Syriza Tories on Tuesday when he suggested that a Greek departure from the single currency might be required for Germany to do more to try to resolve the crisis.

Under such a scenario, Athens would renege on the commitments made by the last Greek government; Germany would respond by forcing the country out of the single currency; and Angela Merkel would either have to propel the eurozone down the path to fiscal union or accept country after country falling out of it.