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G20 'will rise to challenge' - UK PM Gordon Brown

by Rachel Nixon | March 30, 2009 at 09:13 am

148 views | 38 Recommendations | 4 comments

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has said he believes world leaders will "rise to the challenge" of dealing with the global economic crisis at the G20 summit meeting in London on Thursday.

The prime minister said he hoped the meeting would ensure "global solutions" were put in place to tackle the downturn.

The G20 brings together the world's most powerful nations that collectively represent 85% of the world's economy. The group was originally set up after the Asian financial crisis in 1999 to discuss international co-operation among finance ministers and central bankers.

After a Downing Street meeting with Australian prime minister Kevin Rudd, Mr Brown said leaders would do "whatever is necessary".

US President Barack Obama said the G20 must give a "strong message of unity".

Following his meeting with Mr Rudd, Mr Brown said: "The world is coming together and the results of this week will show that global problems... require global solutions.

"I believe the world will rise to the challenge and defeat those who say doing nothing is an option and defeat those who say protectionism is an option."

On Monday Downing Street signalled that more meetings may be necessary after this week's summit.

The prime minister's spokesman said that the G20 summit, which will take place on Thursday, was being seen as part of a "process" and that it was a process "nearer to its beginning than its end".

The comments, which appear to downplay expectations of what will be achieved at the meeting, came after it emerged that any spending decisions would be deferred until some point in the future.

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Roy C

at 10:13 on March 30th, 2009

I was going to say something similar, but Moon, here, has said it more than well enough.

jazzyzazzy

at 14:16 on March 30th, 2009

The men in grey are at it again I see, who do they think they are kidding. THAT LOT ARE A JOKE. but not a funny one.

Paschen

at 15:42 on March 30th, 2009

Well, China, India, Russia and Japan as well as Brazil show clear signs of going their own way now and leaving the "G" behind them.

aberdulais

at 04:33 on March 31st, 2009

I think it has become clear over the last 48 hours that leaks about the need to have further meetings, decisions at later dates etc are being leaked in order to try and backpaddle as fast as possible on the idea that anything useful will come out of the G20 meeting. Apart that is, from the Publics demonstrations that enough is enough and we want change now. And if the UK Home Secretary thinks she can pay for porn, pay her husband while he watches porn, and then pay for her relatives home, all out of tax payers money and expect any public citizen to do what she says, has another think coming.....Mr Brown has now announced this morning at St Paul's cathedral that we have a MORAL duty to sort this out.....presumably meaning there is not a cat in hell's chance that he, or the politicians, will agree on anything other than when to meet next.......