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Small majority for austerity raises big doubts:

Prime Minister Samaras applauds with lawmakers after Wednesday night's vote (Reuters)

A stormy all-day debate in parliament on Wednesday culminated in a flimsy majority of 153 MPs approving the harsh austerity package of 13.5bn euros worth of mostly wage, pension and welfare cuts in the next two years, with a further 5bn euros of cutbacks in 2015-16, as dictated by the troika of Greece’s creditors.
 “The vote’s result marks a large, decisive and encouraging step towards economic recovery and better days for the country as a whole,” said Prime Minister Antonis Samaras after the results of the vote count were announced shortly past midnight.


“We’ve sent a strong message [abroad] that Greece has turned a page,” he added.
 Parliament was besieged by tens of thousands of protesters in the afternoon while opposition lawmakers from left-wing Syriza and conservative Independent Greeks often interrupted the debate with motions of constitutional or parliamentary irregularity.
 This further undermined the 250-page, one-article bill’s legitimacy, which had already been denied by two landmark high-court rulings, one by the State Auditors’ Council on Monday and another by the Supreme Court on Wednesday.