Greece scraps pension cuts

Greece's Parliament on Tuesday voted to scrap plans to cut state pensions, in a motion led by the left-led governing coalition hoping to shore up its flagging support ahead of a general election next year.

Eventually the bailout, worth up to 86 billion euros, expired in August without IMF assistance, and Athens has said better-than-expected public finances enable it to rescind the planned cutbacks.

The European Commission has approved the government's decision.

"The time has come for people to be rewarded for their sacrifices," Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras told lawmakers ahead of the vote, calling the step a "necessary breath for the people of labour ... who saw their pensions and their dignity hurt."

Pensioners, who are in many households the only people with an income due to the highest unemployment rate in the eurozone, have seen earnings...