Greek finance minister urges passage of austerity

By Barbara Kollmeyer MADRID (MarketWatch) -- Greece's Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos on Monday urged politicians in his country to approve new austerity measures in order to "stabilize the situation" and get the next installment of bailout funds from the overall €110 billion package from the European Union and International Monetary Fund. "There is an immediate and urgent need to regain the credibility of the country, as far as the implementation of the Program," he said, in a statement released from a meeting of European finance ministers in Luxembourg. European leaders are demanding the debt-ridden country agree to new spending cuts, with the government facing a crucial vote of confidence on Tuesday. He also said that it is "obvious" that the private sector must take part in addressing Greek debt in the form of retention of existing bonds about to expire. "The political time has been compressed a lot; each day is of extreme importance and hence we cannot afford to waste a single hour," he said.