Eurozone must focus on growth: Britain

(LONDON) - Eurozone countries must concentrate on boosting growth and cutting regulation following the downgrading of several nations in the bloc, British Foreign Secretary William Hague said Sunday.

Hague said the decision on Friday by ratings agency Standard and Poor's to downgrade more than half of the members of the debt-ridden eurozone -- including stripping France of its triple-A rating -- was "serious".

"It underlines the fact that the eurozone is not through its problems... Across Europe, including in the UK, we need to redouble our efforts to get growth going," Hague said.

"That means in Europe more free trade agreements with the rest of the world, it means really pushing for the single market, it means stopping passing regulations who've made life more difficult for businesses."

Britain, which is not a member of the eurozone, was the only EU member to reject a Franco-German proposal in December for a treaty across the bloc on implementing stricter fiscal discipline.

Prime Minister David Cameron said he did so to protect the City of London from moves to introduce a financial services tax.

Britain was also involved in a slanging match with France last month after the French central bank governor and senior ministers said rating agencies should be mulling a debt downgrade of Britain rather than France.

Britain's AAA rating remains intact.

Hague said it was in Britain's interest for the eurozone, its biggest export market, to recover.

"We want the eurozone countries to recover. They can best do so through that kind of financial actions and to really setting a course for growth. No more time wasting bureaucratic directives, real emphasis on free trade."