The Prime Minister has hailed the “historic” agreement at the G20 summit to push ahead with reforms aimed at reversing the current global economic downturn.
Read the G20 communique (new window)
Speaking at a joint press conference with Alistair Darling at the British Embassy in Washington, DC, the PM said that leading nations had agreed to forego any new protectionist measures for the next 12 months. They also pledged to implement fiscal stimulus packages of tax cuts and investment in order to mobilise their economies and to establish a timetable for a new world trade deal by the end of 2009.
The PM said:
“There is a clear determination on the part of world leaders in every continent to take the necessary action to move our economy forward in this difficult period. I believe that you will see in the next few weeks significant further announcements by a number of countries.
“This is not about the abstract language of communiques, but real issues that affect people’s daily lives. By the actions we take, savings are safe, people will be able to keep their jobs, they will not lose their homes in all or our countries.”
Reform of the international financial system and of institutions such as the World Bank and the IMF will be addressed in more detail in a follow-up G20 summit next spring, though Mr Brown did say he believed a “new Bretton Woods” - the 1945 summit that laid the foundations of today’s system - was on the horizon.
The final statement from the G20 declared an agreed set of principles for reform similar to that outlined by the PM in recent weeks: transparency, sound regulation, integrity in financial markets, international cooperation and institutional reform.
Following the conclusion of the summit the PM held bilateral meetings with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and Chinese Premier Wen to summarise their agreed positions on the financial crisis and lay the groundwork for future cooperation.
Read the transcript: Washington press conference with Gordon Brown and Alistair Darling
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