There were 153 members of parliament in favour, with 142 voting against. The budget envisages €3 billion of cuts in state spending in 2014.

The Greek government predicts that 2013 will close with a budget surplus of €812 million, before paying interest on the country’s debts, and that 2014 will produce an equivalent surplus of almost €3bn. The Greek economy is expected to experience its first year of economic growth after six years of recession.

But the government remains at odds with the country’s ‘troika’ of international creditors – the European Commission, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund.

Eurozone finance ministers on Monday (9 December) urged the Greek government to do more to reform its economy, and pushed back the date when Greece will receive its next tranche of loans. “More progress is needed”, said Jeroen Dijsselbloem, the Dutch finance minister who chairs the Eurogroup of eurozone finance ministers, adding that a final decision on releasing the current tranche of aid is unlikely until January.

This means that the discussions between the Greek government and the troika will be under way as Greece assumes the presidency of the Council of Ministers. The Greek government has insisted in recent weeks that all such discussions would be concluded by the end of this year.

The 2014 budget remains a major point of difference between the two sides, with the troika arguing that the budget overestimates Greece’s revenues by €2bn.

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