German parliament backs third Greek bailout package

A breakdown showing the number of dissenters within Chancellor Angela Merkel’s Christian Democrat-led bloc was scheduled to be released on Wednesday.

Up to a quarter of Merkel’s conservatives could vote against the 86-billion-euro ($95 billion) package, sending the government a clear warning not to return to parliament again to ask for more aid. The board of the European bailout fund that will disburse the money were set to hold a teleconference last night to discuss the matter.

Schaeuble told lawmakers that approval of the three-year 86 billion-euro package is “in the interest of Greece and the interest of Europe”.

“But given the fact that the Greek Parliament has already adopted a large part of the measures, it would be irresponsible not to use the chance for a new beginning in Greece“, he said.

Schaeuble, who has repeatedly taken a more sceptical line than Merkel during the crisis and even floated a temporary exit for Greece from the eurozone, enjoys an approval rating of around 70 percent among Germans.

Both the junior member of Merkel’s ruling coalition, the left-leaning Social Democrats, and the opposition Greens had signalled their intention to support the rescue plan.

The Dutch parliament, another tough creditor nation, will also vote today (Wednesday).

The Dutch and Austrian parliaments are also required to vote on the deal, which was approved by the Greek parliament early Friday after an exhaustive debate.

In the interview, Merkel rejected the notion that Germany had driven too hard a bargain with Greece or that Berlin had been isolated in the talks on a third bailout.

The finance ministry argued for a bridging loan for Greece to cover a 3.4 billion euro repayment due to the European Central Bank on Thursday rather than sign off on what it saw as a hasty deal with Athens.

In the Netherlands, a majority of politicians also backed the new Greek rescue after a heated debate in which prime minister Mark Rutte was attacked for reneging on an election pledge to not approve another bailout for Greece. Its officials have been hawkish in demanding that Greece abide by strict terms such as budget cuts and reforms.

Hardliners within his party have accused him of capitulating to unreasonable demands that will plunge the Greek economy further into recession.

There’s speculation there could be more conservative “no” votes on Wednesday, though the measure is still expected to easily pass. “And whether it is used, only the Greeks will decide” he said.

“The pace of arrivals has been steadily increasing in recent weeks, with more refugees and migrants having arrived in Greece during July than during the whole of last year”, UN associate spokesperson Vannina Maestracci said at a daily news briefing.

Greek prime minister Alexis Tsipras has said he is stepping down and calling early elections after suffering a rebellion within his left-wing Syriza party over the country’ new bailout programme.