Money World economy
Icelanders' massive rejection of a deal to pay Britain and the Netherlands billions over the collapse of the Icesave bank was no surprise, Iceland's prime minister said after partial referendum results Saturday.
"This is nothing that comes as a surprise," Johanna Sigurdardottir told public broadcaster RUV after partial results showed more than 90 percent of voters had opted to spurn the deal. "The result is not a shock for the government, considering the state of affairs," she added.
Icelanders were asked to vote on whether the country should honour an agreement to repay Britain and the Netherlands 3.9 billion euros (5.3 billion dollars) by 2024.
This would be to compensate them for money they paid to 340,000 of their citizens hit by the collapse of Icesave in 2008.
The bill was voted through parliament in December but sent to a referendum after President Olafur Ragnar Grimsson refused to sign it. Saturday's vote rejecting was widely expected.
Observers and opinion polls had suggested as many as three quarters of voters would spurn the agreement, and the leftwing government has for weeks been attempting to hammer out a better deal.
"After this referendum it is our job to start finishing the negotiations," Sigurdardottir said.
