Gordon Brown has described recent oil price volatility as “our most pressing challenge now and for the future” and called for action to reduce the damage done by price hikes to the world economy.
Speaking at an international oil and energy summit in London today, Mr Brown said that volatility was harmful to consumers in terms of rising prices and also to producers through the dampening of demand and lower revenues. Citing a UK-commissioned report the PM said that high oil prices had taken $150 billion out of world economic output in 2008.
The PM said:
“Today, with prices falling, it is clear that our most pressing challenge now and for the future is oil price volatility. In the last 12 months alone, oil has risen from $60 dollars a barrel to a peak of $147 dollars before falling back to around $40 dollars today.
“Such volatility is in no one’s interest: wild fluctuations in market prices harm nations all round the world, and damage producers and consumers alike.”
The PM listed three challenges for the international community with regards to energy: encouraging stability in prices; meeting targets for tackling climate change; and establishing secure energy sources.
The “true importance” of achieving these aims through consumer-producer dialogue was “to protect families and businesses across the world”, he said.
Speeches and Transcripts: Speech at the London Energy Meeting
Today’s summit follows on from the inaugural meeting held in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia in June this year.
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