Greece calls referendum on EU bail-out

Greece’s prime minister unexpectedly announced a referendum to approve a second EU bail-out deal for his austerity-hit country, less than a week after it was agreed with international creditors at a EU summit, the FT reports. George Papandreou made the pledge on Monday night in a speech to lawmakers in his fractious PanHellenic Socialist Movement (Pasok) party but did not set a specific date for the vote. The premier’s move looked likely to cause alarm in Brussels and reinforced concerns that Greece’s fraught domestic politics are spiralling out of control amid growing popular anger over public sector job cuts and tax increases. The referendum is only Greece’s second in almost 40 years, reports Reuters, and the outcome seems predictable as recent opinion polls show the bail-out deal is unpopular. It is likely to be held in early 2012.