Finnish Parliament approves new Geek bailout talks

Finland's parliament voted on Thursday for negotiations over a new bailout deal for Greece as well as talks on new bridge financing, Finance Minister Alexander Stubb said.

The vote came despite Finland having a reputation for being one of Europe's most hawkish countries over bailouts, with Prime Minister Juha Sipila depending on the euro sceptic Finns Party in his government coalition.

"From the beginning it was important for us to get tough conditionality. We feel that this has materialized in the deal (agreed by the EU and Greece)," Stubb told reporters.

The Grand Committee, which acts on behalf of the parliament's 200 MPs and is responsible for giving the government any mandate to negotiate on aid for Greece, approved the government's request.

[Reuters]