German parliament approves expanded eurozone bailout

The German government voted in favour of expanding the eurozone bailout fund Thursday.

Of 611 lawmakers, 523 voted in favour of expanding the European Financial Stability Fund (EFSF), 85 voted against it and three abstained. The vote followed hours of heated debate over Germany’s role as Europe’s economic powerhouse.

Some members of German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s centre-right coalition had threatened to vote against her debt crisis package, which didn’t end up having to rely on opposition votes to pass.

Germany will now guarantee loans from the bailout fund of up to 211 billion euros, compared to the 123 billion euros so far.

The EFSF is intended to help European countries caught up in the debt crisis.

“It leads to a little stability at least in the short-term but it doesn’t necessarily solve all the problems, obviously, for the European Union with not just Greece, but Portugal and Italy and others struggling with mounting debt loads,” 680News Senior Business Editor Mike Eppel said.

“This is just one stage of a multi-stage process.”

Eppel noted that financial headlines out of Europe and the United States are having effects on the markets and the volatility persists.

The German lawmakers were voting on a decision made by European leaders in July to boost the lending capacity of the bailout funds to 440 euros.

With files from The Associated Press

Top Stories

Top Stories

Most Watched Today