Following Greece’s acceptance of a third bailout agreement with its draconian reforms, banks are due to reopen on Monday with the European Central Bank (ECB) stepping in with emergency funds in the form of a €7bn ($10.3bn) bridging loan.

Meanwhile limits on cash withdrawals will be eased gradually. The move comes after the Greek parliament voted on the new bailout plan which can supply Greece with €86bn over three years, but only if reforms are conducted with the agreement of the international creditors.

Reflecting the dire situation the country faces, Greece needs to repay €4.2bn ($6.1bn) to the ECB on the same day the banks reopen, as well as making up its missed payments to the IMF – spending the €7bn almost as soon as the Greek government receives it.

With emergency assistance dealt with, further negotiations will begin – probably lasting weeks – over the reforms contained within the bailout deal.

Huge scepticism in Greece and beyond has been expressed, the deal is believed to be unsustainable and misjudged, with even the IMF expressing its concern over the calculations at the heart of the agreement.

A report by the IMF has described Greece’s public debt as “highly unsustainable” and that debt relief “well beyond what has been under consideration to date” needs to be agreed by its European creditors.

Despite the deal forced upon Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, and its acceptance by the Greek parliament on Thursday, German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble has repeated his suggestion a “time-out” from the eurozone would still be the best option or Greece.

Prime Minister Tsipras won the parliamentary vote on the controversial package in the early hours of Thursday by 229 votes to 64, but needed the support of opposition MPs to get it through.

The same night there were angry protests in central Athens with groups of leftist and anarchist groups hurling petrol bombs at police.

38 Syriza MPs, including former finance minister Yanis Varoufakis, refused to support the memorandum of understanding, leaving Tsipras hugely vulnerable and unable to govern without further assistance from the opposition.

With Syriza’s ‘mandate’ in tatters, some believe an election is highly likely within weeks.

In essence, the vote in the parliament on Thursday commits Greece to – amongst a host of other measures – reforming tax and pension arrangements. VAT is to be charged at a top rate of 23 per cent for processed food and restaurants, a 13 per cent rate to cover fresh food, energy bills, water and hotel stays; and a 6 per cent rate for medicines and books.

Corporation tax rises by three per cent, to 29 per cent for small companies, and luxury taxes on big cars, boats and swimming pools are to be enforced.

Early retirement will be ended by 2022, increasing the retirement age to 67. By next Wednesday, Greece must also agree to a major overhaul of its civil justice system. Other reforms needed to honour the bailout agreement include more privatisation, a review of collective bargaining, and market reforms, including relaxing existing limitations on Sunday trading.

The agreement contains a commitment to launch privatisation programme to raise €50bn ($73.5bn) which many analysts have said is optimistic in the extreme. Without such income Greece will have to find even more cash to make its debt repayments; a scenario that would involve yet another bailout. The circle would continue.

Sources: BBC. The Guardian. Business Insider Australia