Osborne under pressure on IMF loans Christine Lagarde leaves a news briefing ahead of the spring meetings of the IMF and World Bank in Washington. Photograph: Fang Zhe/Xinhua Press/Corbis George Osborne is coming under pressure to commit billions of pounds in extra loans for the global economy when he attends the organisation's spring meeting. The chancellor arrived in Washington on Thursday night to discuss the loans to the International Monetary Fund as its boss Christine Lagarde insisted it was in the UK's "interest" to allocate extra resources. Treasury officials insisted any deal had to be done at a "global level" and must meet strict conditions. Lagarde, the IMF managing director, told Sky News: "The UK is a founding father of the IMF. And the UK is there for international grave situations. It's always been a very loyal partner when it's tough. But it's in their interest. Because if the key partners of a country like the UK are in very bad shape, they are bad clients. It's not in the interest of the UK to have a weak euro. Lagarde is seeking to secure at least £250bn in additional resources for the IMF's "firewall" fund to stabilise the world economy. Earlier this year Osborne said "there is a case" for increasing the pot and he would have to "think very hard" about rejecting any request. But he cautioned that Britain stands ready to boost its contribution only if certain conditions are met. He wants assurances there will be no funds specific to the eurozone and that bailouts are for countries not currencies. Parliament has previously approved around £40bn in support for the IMF, of which about £30bn has already been committed. Any new request going beyond the £10bn "headroom" still available to Osborne would require a fresh vote by MPs. Committing money does not mean it will necessarily be drawn against and, because it would be given in the form of a loan, it would not deplete public spending budgets. Conservative backbencher Peter Bone warned against giving money that could be used to "prop up" the eurozone. He said: "I don't think there should be any more British money going to bailout the eurozone, it's up to the eurozone countries to bail themselves out. At a time when people are groaning from the problems of the budget, to prop up a doomed currency is utter madness. The last thing the government needs at the moment is more bad headlines. No country has lost money investing in the IMF in the organisation's 67-year history. A Treasury spokesman said: "The UK is a long-standing supporter of the IMF. However, we have been clear that there are strict conditions under which we would agree to an increase in resources. That's why any deal on IMF resources has to be done at the global level.