Greece cuts package passes parliament with just 153 votes

Its latest cuts Bill scraped through the 300-seat parliament with 153 votes.

It commits Greece to a further €13.5 billion (£10.8bn) of cuts and economic "restructuring," including destroying workers' rights and raising the retirement age.

Prime Minister Antonis Samaras admitted some of the measures were "unfair" but claimed that without the cuts Greece would go bankrupt.

In the end his 176-seat coalition was reduced to 153 votes.

Junior partner Democratic Left's 16 MPs refused to support the attack on workers' rights.

And six MPs from the socialist Pasok and one from Mr Samaras's New Democracy party rebelled and were kicked out.

Outside parliament 100,000 people made it clear what ordinary Greeks thought of the plan.

Trade unionists had gathered from all over Athens to surround the building, with many staying in Syntagma square into the early hours despite torrential rain and baiting by riot police.

A few hundred protesters began rioting, hurling chunks of marble and home-made bombs at police who responded with tear gas and water cannon.

Greek Communist Party general secretary Aleka Papariga warned that state violence went hand-in-hand with the government's cuts.

"The violence will increase, we know this very well, you are not persuasive without violence," she said.

But even the massive cuts weren't enough for German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble, who said today that eurozone finance ministers wouldn't release the next raft of credit at their meeting on Monday.

He wants to wait until the 2013 Greek budget is rubber-stamped on Sunday and a later report by the EU, IMF and European Central Bank.