Greek referendum may be brought forward to December

Greece's planned referendum on its latest bailout deal may be brought forward by about a month to December, the country's interior minister said on Wednesday.

"There is a possibility to hold the referendum earlier (than January), within December," Interior Minister Haris Kastanidis said on state television.

This would happen if Greece and its international partners work out the details of the bailout agreement earlier than planned, Kastanidis said. Kastanidis had said earlier this week that the referendum would most likely be held in January. But government spokesman Ilias Mosialos said earlier on Wednesday, without elaborating, that it would be held as early as possible.

Cabinet backing

Greece's prime minister won the backing of his cabinet on Wednesday to hold a referendum on a 130 billion euro bailout package but will find the stunned euro zone leaders who struck the deal last week harder to convince.

Some of his party lawmakers called for him to quit for jeopardising Greek euro membership with his shock decision to call a popular vote, a move that pummelled the euro and global stocks, but the cabinet support at least gives him a stay of execution before a confidence vote in parliament on Friday.

"The referendum will be a clear mandate and a clear message in and outside Greece on our European course and participation in the euro," George Papandreou told the seven-hour cabinet meeting, according to a statement released by his office.

"No one will be able to doubt Greece's course within the euro."

After the show of unity at home, Papandreou will later face the leaders of France and Germany, who summoned him for crisis talks in Cannes, before a G20 summit of major world economies, to push for quick implementation of the bailout deal.

Papandreou's gamble guarantees weeks of uncertainty just when the 17-nation currency area is desperate for a period of calm to implement the remedies agreed to overcome its sovereign debt crisis.