Syriza MEP: Bailout deal ‘not sustainable’

An MEP with the Syriza party in Greece has claimed the measures included in an agreement with Eurozone leaders are “not sustainable” and will provoke “more recession and more poverty”.

As part of the agreement, €50bn in Greek public assets will be held in a trust to service the country’s debt while there will be a “complete” reform of pensions and the labour market.

A debt haircut has been ruled out and Greece’s anti-austerity laws, which were passed in February, will be repealed.

However, Stelios Kouloglou expects most of the party will support Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras in trying to get the agreement through parliament.

Mr Kouloglou said he was furious with Germany.

“We are in the face of reprisals now…According to the new rules of the European Union, nobody must disobey,” he said.

Greece’s parliament must ratify the deal by Wednesday. The deal means that the European Central Bank can continue to support Greece’s beleaguered banks, which have come close to collapse.

European Council President Donald Tusk said it was a landmark agreement, and made time for a little wordplay at the announcement.

“After 17 hours of negotiations, we have finally reached it…Someone can say we have an ‘ag-Greek-ment’, he said.

Estonian prime minister Taavi Roivas denied that Greece had been humiliated by the reforms.

He said: “Most of those things that Greece has committed to have been done in most of our countries without any external pressure. These are things that need to be done, not so much for Brussels or for other European countries, but for the country itself.”