German parliament overwhelmingly approves Greek bailout
Germany’s parliament has overwhelmingly approved a third bailout package for Greece.
The backing comes despite misgivings by some conservatives from Chancellor Angela Merkel’s Christian Democratic party.
German politicians voted 454-113 in favour of the deal, with 18 abstentions.
A breakdown of the vote by party was not immediately available, but the result seemed to dispel widespread speculation that Ms Merkel would face a rise in dissenters within her conservative bloc.
Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble urged lawmakers ahead of the vote to back Greece’s third bailout in five years in light of a marked change in the Greek government’s approach.
Germany is the largest single contributor to the bailouts.
The vote for the bailout package was also supported by Ms Merkel’s coalition partner, the Social Democrats, and the opposition Greens.
