Greek parliament approves bailout reforms before Eurogroup meeting

Alkis Konstantinidis/Reuters

Greek lawmakers approved on Sunday a bill which increases tax, creates a new privatization fund and frees up the sale of non performing loans in exchange for much-needed bailout loans and to qualify for debt relief.

Athens hopes the vote, two days before a key euro zone finance ministers' meeting, will help it wrap up a key bailout review and unlock new funds that it needs to pay IMF loans, ECB bonds maturing in July and increasing state arrears.

The left-led government has a narrow majority of 153 lawmakers who voted in favor of the reforms except one MP who approved the bill in principle but voted against some of the articles.

(Reporting by Lefteris Papadimas and Renee Maltezou)

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