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  • Gordon Brown – 2008 Joint Press Conference with David Miliband at the EU Council Meeting

    Gordon Brown – 2008 Joint Press Conference with David Miliband at the EU Council Meeting

    The press conference with Gordon Brown, the then Prime Minister, and David Miliband, the then Foreign Secretary, in Brussels on 16 October 2008.

    Thank you very much for joining us at the end of the European Council meeting.

    Can I start by saying that yesterday the G8 group of countries called for a meeting of world leaders to agree the necessary and urgent reforms to the international financial system as a result of events of recent months. Today the European Union in its communiqué has welcomed this leaders meeting, and has also agreed the principles and the priority areas for global action that we believe should be agreed at the meeting.

    The five principles we have agreed for the financial system are that there should be transparency, sound banking, responsibility, integrity and global governance.  And we have also agreed that, based on these principles, we should move to early decisions about transparency, global standards of regulation, cross-border supervision of financial institutions, crisis management, the avoidance of conflicts of interest – included in that are executive remuneration packages – and the creation of an early warning system for the world economy.

    The reform of the international financial system is not only necessary to prevent a crisis happening again, it is essential to end the current crisis.  People need to feel confident that their institutions cannot act irresponsibly.  So we must ensure that off-balance sheet vehicles are brought back on to balance sheets and fully declared, we must have total transparency in the activities of banks, we must set up immediately the 30 major financial institutions with their colleges of supervisors by the end of the year, we must remove the conflicts of interest, executive remuneration packages must reflect the values of hard working families, that you reward hard work and enterprise and effort and responsible risk-taking, but you do not reward excesses and irresponsibility. And we also agreed we must reform the International Monetary Fund and the Financial Stability Forum for a more effective early warning system to prevent future crises.

    The other major subject of discussion at the Council last night and this morning was the energy and environmental package.  We agreed that we would make our final decisions in December.  We also agreed that faced with high and volatile oil prices it was more essential than ever that we end our dependency on oil.  We discussed the impact that these high oil prices have had on our economies.  Although the price of oil is still too high, it has fallen in recent weeks and months to around $80 a barrel from a peak of around $150 a barrel in the summer.  It is encouraging that we have seen petrol prices fall in the UK in recent days with some supermarkets reducing their prices below £1 a litre, but I would like to see other retailers following that lead. The average price is still £1.07 a litre and there is still too much variation in price across our country.  In some areas the petrol price is still as high as £1.20 a litre.  That must change.

    You will have before you in the next few minutes all the conclusions of the Council, but David Miliband and I are very happy to answer any questions that you have in detail on the issues that I have raised and the other issues of the Council.

    Question: Prime Minister while obviously what you have done here has been greeted on the world stage, surely back home you must be feeling particularly anxious that your bank bailout scheme effectively doesn’t seem to be working.  Markets again are in freefall today.

    Prime Minister: I think markets are reflecting not just events in one country, but what is happening in every part of the world and there will be uncertainty until we finalise many of the decisions that have been made in other countries as well as ours.  I notice that Switzerland has announced measures today to refinance their banking system.  I am pleased that not only the Euro Group but other countries have followed the lead that has been taken, and obviously we are pleased that in America changes are taking place for the recapitalisation of banks.

    Look, the issue for me is what we can do to help hard working families in our country, what we can do to help people facing the high petrol prices, with high gas and electricity bills, people looking for mortgages and not able to get them, small businesses worried about the finance that is available to them.  I have said that Stage one is to make sure that we have stability in the financial system, and that we have worked upon with measures over the last few days, that will take time to come through but will show a difference in the way the financial institutions are acting; and Stage two, to restore confidence that people’s savings will always be safe and to ensure that people have trust in the banking system are the reforms that we are going to be making over these next few weeks.  And I think you have got to look at the programme of activity that we have settled on together and [indistinct] see that reflected in prices coming down for hard working families for petrol, I want to see the mortgage market resume in our country and that is something that we are working on at the moment, and obviously I want to help people who are worried about their jobs or are facing redundancy, to help them get jobs for the future.

    Now these are the issues that we are working on every day and I believe that we will see changes as a result of the work that we have done.  But let us remember this is a hard time for the whole world economy, these are difficult and troubled times for many countries in other parts of the world, we will see this through by being fair to hard working families in our country.

    Question: Prime Minister two questions really, the first about what you said about transparency and bringing off-balance sheet vehicles on to balance sheets, do you think there is a need in our national finances in terms of private finance initiatives and the rest possibly to clarify our own national books as well as far as debt?  And secondly, even if you stabilise the banking system there seems to be  a view that there isn’t the confidence out there in the markets, so do you feel we are now approaching a situation akin to the United States in the ‘30s where we do need to see a Keynesian boost in our public sector spending to keep the economy going?

    Prime Minister: Well we are spending more to get the economy moving, we are spending more obviously on our work programmes, we are also continuing our high levels of investment in transport, in schools, hospitals and infrastructure, and we have said because we have got low national debt we are in a position to borrow to keep the economy moving forward and to move the economy forward where it has been falling behind.  So we are doing that already.

    As far as off-balance sheet activities are concerned, we conform to all the international standards.  The decision about what is on balance sheet is made by  the Office of National Statistics, which is independent of the government, and at the same time they conform to the international standards of accounting practice in these areas.  So everything that we do is related to international standards that we are happy to follow.

    Question: Prime Minister, again two questions.  First, the Japanese Prime Minister this morning has come out against the idea of a world leaders summit to discuss Bretton Woods II saying very specifically that this would be just one step away from the worst case scenario, our honest feeling is that we want to prevent a situation where we need to hold such a summit.  And secondly, several of your Ministerial colleagues are getting very excited about the way you are handling the financial crisis. When they suggest you should hold a snap general election, how tempted are you?

    Prime Minister: I am getting on with the job of trying to take us through these difficult times and that is the only thing that is on my mind, it has got my undivided attention and the whole attention of the government.  Having created this new Economic Council, on which David and other Ministers sit, we are working hard on all the issues that worry people:  the mortgage market, what can happen to their jobs and employment, what we can do about that, and how we can help small businesses in particular.  These are the issues that are concerning us at the moment.

    I think there is a growing international consensus for the leaders meeting that we talked about yesterday.  It is interesting that in the G8 communiqué which was signed by all members of the G8 the proposals for the leaders meeting was included, and it also said that we had to come to quick decisions about reforming the international system.  You see the reason why I am interested in making these changes that make for proper disclosure and transparency and avoid conflicts of interest is that people need to know now that the institutions in which they are saving, in which their life savings are often held, in which their pension is being invested, in which their hard earned money is being put, they need to know that these institutions are acting responsibly and to make the changes that we are proposing is a necessary element of building confidence that we will solve these problems and that all the irresponsibility that has happened in the past is rooted out.

    So I think these changes are not academic, they are not some side-show, they are not something to look at once you have got through the difficulties of today, they are a means of solving the problems of today by assuring people that they can have trust and confidence in the financial institutions of our country, and indeed of all countries round the world.

    And I think, as I said, that there is a growing consensus that we need to formulate proposals that can be implemented quickly.  What the European Council has actually done today is set out the principles that we should follow and I am pleased that these are the five principles that we have talked about over the last few weeks, they have also set out the priority areas for action, and if people are sure that institutions are acting in a transparent way, if people know that conflicts of interest are being avoided, if they know that everything is on balance sheet instead of off-balance sheet, then people will be far more confident about the future, we are investing and saving in these financial institutions.

    So these are changes that I think are needed now and I believe we can build international support for them.

    Question: You talk about the markets, there is a view in the markets that actually shares are falling because of concerns about the real economy.  Now we appreciate that you make your detailed economic forecasts in the pre-budget report, but given the growing concern about some of these things do you feel under any pressure to look the country in the eye, to level with families and businesses and say we now ought to prepare at least for the possibility of the British economy entering a recession?

    Prime Minister: Well I have said very clearly to people, and other government members have said exactly the same, that these are very difficult times, they are difficult times because of two shocks to the global economy.  The reason that people’s standards of living have been hit is because oil prices have gone up and food prices have gone up and that means that the price at the petrol pumps, the price of gas and electricity, all these things have gone up, and at the same time you have had the price of basic essentials like bread and milk and eggs, they have gone up as well.  So people have suffered that hit on their standards of living as a result of the rise in global oil prices and food prices. And at the same time we have had this credit crunch.

    These are both what you might call the problems of an economy that is now global, so we have seen the first resources crisis of the global economy when oil demand has been higher than supply, and we have seen the first financial crisis of this new age of globalisation and that is what we are trying to deal with at the moment.

    I think people know that these problems did not start in Britain, that they started in America as far as the banking system is concerned, I think they know that every government round the world is trying to deal with them.  It is my aim to take the British people through these difficulties and do so in the fairest possible way so that we can help people such as pensioners facing fuel bills with a higher winter allowance than last year, so that we can help people on low incomes with their gas and electricity bills, as we are doing with the special tariffs that are available to them, and so that we can expand the new deal to help people who are facing difficulties in employment.

    Now these are all the things that government can do.  Yes, these are hard and difficult times for everybody in every country of the world, but our intention is to take the British people through this and I believe we are entering these difficulties with a far sounder economy than before because we have low interest rates, we have the corporate balance sheet of firms outside the financial sector in a good position, and we have at the same time of course low national debt which allows us to borrow at times of difficulty to enable the economy to be pushed forward.

    Question: It would appear that at least one of the banks involved in the government’s bailout scheme is insisting on paying dividends to its shareholders.  Is that acceptable?  And just secondly, on climate change it would appear that last night’s discussion has set things back rather than push things forward vis a vis December, could you comment?

    Prime Minister: Well I think first of all we are obviously shareholders of both these banks that we have invested substantial amounts in and we are talking to them day by day about how we can help improve the position, but we have already stated what our position is and we will continue to look at it with the banks.

    On the question of climate change, I think it was a very full discussion last night and then a very full discussion this morning, but we have agreed that the principles on which the Council decisions were made last year and this year are the principles that we are following, and we have also agreed that we have got to come to decisions in December.  Now we will have a new American President in January.  Both candidates in the American Presidential elections are proposing major changes in America’s climate change policy.  Europe must have its own climate change policy to go to the negotiations in Copenhagen to reach the successor of the Kyoto agreement.

    So it is very important that Europe comes to an agreement about what the detailed measures are to deal with climate change. And I am confident after this morning that everybody understands the importance of reaching that agreement, and of course there is intricate work that has got to be done with the Presidency and with the Commission over the next few weeks so that we can make these decisions in December.

    David, you have been following this, haven’t you?

    Foreign Secretary: Well I think it is very clear when you see the Council conclusions, there has been no step back.  But what you are right to point out is that in a number of countries there is a bit of what you might call buyer’s remorse about the agreement in March 2007.  What I think is significant about the discussion over the last 24 hours is that the Presidency and then the whole Council insisted there was no going back on the agreements of March 2007 and March 2008, no going back on the determination to have an agreement by the end of this year, and no going back on the determination for Europe to set a lead on the connected issues of climate and energy.

    And I think there is going to be some very hard talking over the next couple of months, led by the Presidency and by the Commission, but what is clear is that we will ensure that Europe hits its 20% target and is in a position to hit the 30% target if other countries come to the Copenhagen negotiations with appropriate offers, and that is the very important basis on which we can then share out the national allocations and the national effort as part of the coordinated European plan.

    Question: I think there was some discussion overnight about the idea of some sort of European industrial policy to supplement the financial package you have already announced and I suspect that Britain and some of the other liberal countries were reluctant to sign up to some of the language originally in Paragraph 10.  Could you just give us a bit of the flavour of the discussions?

    Prime Minister: I don’t know whether you have got the old paragraph 10 or the new paragraph 10.

    Question: The old one.

    Prime Minister: But there have been changes made in the discussion.  Outside the financial sector the European Council underlines its determination to take the necessary steps to support growth and jobs in the economy, and then it requests the Commission to make appropriate proposals by the end of the year, and then it mentions the need to preserve the competitiveness of industry.  And I think that is where we are, but there are structural reforms that are going to continue to be necessary, the competitiveness of industry is important and we have got to look at all aspects of the real economy during this difficult period.

    Foreign Secretary: It is also worth pointing to paragraph 5, which you will be very interested in, which has a commitment to support the Commission’s implementation [indistinct] of the rules of competition policy, particularly state aids, continuing to uphold the principles of the single market and the state aid regime.

    Question: Two questions for the Prime Minister.  Prime Minister do you have an idea of how the International Monetary Fund should be reformed in order to meet the principles that the European Union has set out for a sound international financial system?  And the second question is when do you expect the European Union to be able to resume its negotiations with Russia on the partnership agreement?

    Prime Minister: I will ask David to deal with the Russia question because he has been intimately involved with it.

    As far as the International Monetary Fund is concerned, this all sounds very abstract, but it is very important that we have an international organisation that is capable of being an early warning system for the world economy so it can spot these problems in advance and spot what is happening in one continent before it affects other continents.  It is also very important that we have an organisation that can deal with crises that can take place in the world economy, and it is also important that we have the surveillance of what is going on all the time so that we know how growth is proceeding in different continents and countries and what needs to be done to improve the functioning of the world economy. And we need, as you know, the transparency and the disclosure in the financial markets that have been a problem in recent months and recent years and we need someone at an international level monitoring what is happening.

    Now we have the Financial Stability Forum and we have the International Monetary Fund. The Financial Stability Forum is a group of countries that are the main financial centres that have come together and they have made a number of recommendations.  The IMF of course represents all major economies in the world and I think what we are looking for is an International Monetary Fund that is more independent, more like an independent central bank in the way it operates, which was by the way the original proposal for the International Monetary Fund made by Keynes in the 1940s, but also one that is capable of bringing countries together to deal with crises as they arise.

    So these are quite fundamental reforms, what some people call a new Bretton Woods, reflecting where the first Bretton Woods agreement came in America, and I think we are ready to move towards decisive action in creating a global framework to deal with what are essentially, as everybody now knows, global flows of capital that can affect every continent but where at the moment we only have national supervision.

    Foreign Secretary: On Russia, all 27 welcomed the withdrawal that has happened from the buffer zones around South Ossetia and Abkhazia, while recognising that … complete finish of the Russian commitments under the agreements that took place in August.  There is an audit going on of EU-Russia relations which will be complete by the time of the next General Affairs Council on 10 November and I don’t want to spoil all your anticipation of the conclusions that will be coming out, but you will see in paragraph 21 that it makes clear that the decision on the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement should be dependent, in part, on that audit and on continuing Russian compliance with those commitments that it made in August.

    Question:Prime Minister you mentioned that some oil companies are not passing on the reduction in oil price at the petrol pumps.  Is there anything that you can actually do about that?  Will you summon the oil companies to Downing Street?  And is there anything that the government itself can do in terms of cutting fuel duty?

    Prime Minister: Well we have got, as I understand it this morning, two supermarkets that have reduced their price below £1 a litre, and given that the average price was about £1.18 at its peak that is a considerable cut in prices.  But that should be a cut in prices to reflect that the barrel of oil which was once $150 is now nearer $80 a barrel.  And I want to see the competition between the supermarkets reflected, and the oil companies, in lower prices at the pumps. And I think you will see over the next few days people giving a great deal of attention to what the price is that is being charged by different companies.  So let me say that the first thing we want to do is to see retailers following the lead that has been taken by some people.

    I think the public know that when oil prices go up it is reflected very quickly in the petrol pump price, what they want to know is that when oil prices come down, that is also reflected in the pump price.  So over these next few days we will be monitoring what is happening, but I expect other companies to follow the lead that has been taken by two supermarkets in the last day.

    I think we have also got to remember, and we have had a number of reports done on this by the Office of Fair Trading and others, that the petrol price is high in some parts of the country and it is still at a price of £1.20 a litre in some areas, and that we will continue to look at that as well.  We have had reports done on this before to look at what is happening in the market place, we will continue to examine these things but I believe that also must change.

    Question: You mentioned during one of your answers that you want the mortgage market to resume, what can you tell us about the moves that the government is taking specifically to get the mortgage market going again?

    Prime Minister: Well as you know we have had the Crosby report which is looking at the features of the mortgage market that may need to change, but in the last few days the agreements that we have signed with the major banks is a commitment on their part to resume lending and to offer lending at 2007 levels.  Now that is the first stage to the resumption of the mortgage market.  Obviously we continue to look at other things that we can do.  As you know, we have brought forward our house building programme for local authorities and housing associations, we have entered the market ourselves with some of them actually buying up some of the surplus houses in the market place, and we will continue to look at other things that we can do to help people, both hard pressed mortgage payers in instances where we want to see action to prevent repossessions, but at the same time to get the mortgage market moving so that in Britain it can move quickly again.

    We do not have the problem that some other countries have.  If you go to America or Spain there has been an over-building of houses, or that is how the market is interpreted by people, so there is a surplus amount of houses in these countries and it may take longer to resume both the building and the sales that have happened in the past.  In our case we know that there is a high demand that is latent for new housing, lots of young couples not able to get houses, lots of people wanting to move and not able to do so, and obviously we can help in that, but that is the banks resuming normal lending that is going to make the biggest difference.  So we are taking action and we will consider any further measures that are necessary.

    Question: Are you specifically considering tax cuts in the UK to stimulate the economy, and what is the EU as a whole discussing in order to avoid a deep and prolonged economic recession?

    Prime Minister: Well as you know we have got an income tax cut for basic rate payers that is coming through at the moment, it is £120, we froze petrol duty and of course we have raised the winter allowance for pensioners in our country.  But any other decisions are a matter, I can say on this occasion, for the Chancellor.

    Question: And for the EU as a whole?

    Prime Minister: There is no proposal for the EU to involve itself in either tax raising or tax cutting.

    Question: Prime Minister was there further discussion of closing down tax havens today?

    Prime Minister: This is a major subject of discussion usually at the Finance Ministers meeting.  I must say that today what we were trying to lay down were the principles that will guide our approach to international financial sector reform.  Obviously what is happening in different parts of the world will be reflected in our discussions, but the principles have been laid down and some of the priorities.  And I think disclosure and transparency in the conduct of different countries round the world is a big issue and that is at the heart of some of the concerns that you raise.

    Question: You had bilateral meetings this morning with Mr Zapatero.  You told him, or we have been told that you told him that you want Spain to go to this international summit. Can you please tell us why do you feel it is important for Spain to go to that meeting?

    Prime Minister: Well Spain is a big economy and it has got a government that has been making proposals about how we reform things internationally.  I have very good relations with Prime Minister Zapatero and some of the proposals that he has been putting forward are very interesting.  If there is, let’s say, a G20 meeting, and Spain is not a member of the G20, I think, and I have said to President Bush that Spain should be represented at this meeting.

    Question: Mr Zapatero has invited you to visit Spain, do you know when you are going?

    Prime Minister: I am hoping to visit Spain soon.  I don’t know if that is a very detailed answer.

    Question: As we see the regulation coming in that is probably we are not seeing the City as it used to be over 200 years, that is flexibility, [indistinct] a German bank and other banks across Europe do business in the city which they couldn’t do back at home … this is a big contribution to the GDP of the UK.  How do you think this will affect the overall GDP growth and will you ask Brussels one day to help out with these regulations to bring down the City?

    Prime Minister: Let’s be absolutely clear, we see the City of London and our financial services industry as not only a strong industry but one that will be a leader in the world for many, many years to come.  Indeed in many, many areas we are the global centre, we are the leading financial centre in the world and we will continue to be so.  I said a few days ago we are not going to take the over-hasty action, such as [indistinct] Oxley in the United States of America after Enron and other cases.  We are going to have a considered view about what is the best thing to do to match what is the need for competition to be strong, and at the same time standards to be upheld.  So I see no reason why by leading this debate about how we can improve financial services and the way we have transparency, the City of London will be enhanced by this, not diminished.

    Question: Various people have commented on how you have very much dominated the agenda at this summit.  Could I ask you to describe what you believe your own role and influence is in the discussion to get Europe and the world out of this economic crisis?

    Prime Minister: I think we are all doing what we can.  I think President Sarkozy chaired this summit with a great deal of brilliance.  These were very difficult discussions on climate change, as David and I have reflected, and very detailed discussions on the world economy.  And I do want to praise his leadership and that of President Barroso in this set of discussions which are important not just for Europe but for the rest of the world.  And I also have worked very closely over the last few days with Jean Claude Trichet and with Jean Claude Junker, the President of the Euro Group, and their leadership has been very important also to what we have managed to agree at this summit.

    I think the important thing is that everybody contributes to what they know is a problem that has got to be dealt with.  The G8 statement yesterday talked about deficiencies that we had found in the financial system.  If we can deal with these deficiencies quickly then people’s confidence and trust in the system will be not only restored but enhanced. And I think it is very important to see this as Stage one and Stage two, Stage one was the stabilisation of the banking system, that is measures that we have taken over the last few days;  Stage two is to build the confidence in the future of the financial system that will make people feel, rightly so, that their savings and deposits are safe.  And if we can play a small part with some of the proposals that we have been working on now for some years for the global financial system, as well as learning the lessons of what has happened in the last year or two, then I think that is all to the good of the world economy.

    And I think you should regard this as a cooperative effort where different countries, as with Prime Minister Zapatero, where different proposals are now coming together, and know now that you cannot leave this until the next crisis, or you cannot treat the reforms as abstract academic points of discussion, you have got to take the action now so that people are convinced that we have done everything in our power to deal with the problems in the financial system, to clean it up where it needs to be cleaned up, and we will continue to look at every area where there are problems, and then to agree not just nationally but globally on the common standards that are necessary for the future.

    Question: You attended the Euro Group meeting a few days ago, I was wondering if your thinking on the UK joining the euro has changed at all in the last few days?

    Prime Minister: Our position on joining the euro has not changed.  We continue obviously as we have said before to review it but we have got no plans to join the euro.

    Question: You have been talking about who is going to be invited to the leaders’ conference, can you say when and where it will take place?

    Prime Minister: I can’t make that decision, many people have got to be consulted on what is the appropriate time that suits their diaries and their programmes.  What I do know is that there is an agreement now from the G8 that we will discuss not only the current issues about recapitalising the banking system, we will also discuss the problems that people have in their day to day goals, with what has happened to the price of oil, we will be discussing the reform of the international financial system and we will be discussing how we can get a trade agreement, a world trade agreement which will be a signal that protectionism is completely unacceptable.

    Now various proposals have been made, I think President Sarkozy and others are talking about this summit in New York, but that date is still to be agreed.  And obviously there are going to be discussions this weekend, President Sarkozy is meeting President Bush, I am in regular contact with President Bush, I have talked to all the other European leaders over the last few days, I have talked also to Premier Wen in China and I have talked to President Lula in Brazil.  I think it is very important that all the different players in the world economy are involved in the making of decisions that affect not just one or two continents, but every continent round the world.

    Question: Can you tell us whether an agreement has been reached on this reflection group, or the group of wise men, and whether the UK is sending a member and what do you expect from this group?

    Prime Minister: On the reflection group, Richard Lambert is indeed our member, and I think you will find in the communiqué a reference to the continuing work of the reflection group.  Richard Lambert, for people who may not know him, is the Director General of the Confederation of British Industry, I don’t want to single out one newspaper, but formerly Editor of the Financial Times, and he has been a member of the Monetary Committee of the Bank of England, so he has a great deal of experience to bring to this group.

  • Gordon Brown – 2008 Speech to the House of Commons on the European Union

    Gordon Brown – 2008 Speech to the House of Commons on the European Union

    The speech made by Gordon Brown, the then Prime Minister, on 20 October 2008.

    With permission, Mr Speaker, I should like to make a statement about the European Council held in Brussels which I attended with my Rt. Hon Friends the Chancellor and the Foreign Secretary on 15th and 16th October – the main business of which was to consider European actions to stabilise financial markets and how we can work together to reform our international financial systems. The council also welcomed the co-ordinated interest rate cut by central banks around the world.

    But at the heart of our considerations was our shared understanding that the massive reduction in global financial activity and the fracturing of the global financial system has been the result of irresponsible and often undisclosed lending that started in American sub prime markets.

    And while national action is necessary, the root problem can only be dealt with by changes in our financial systems – to recapitalise banks and to reform supervision around the principle of rewarding hard work enterprise and responsible risk taking but not irresponsibility and excess.

    Market estimates suggest that in recent years some $2 trillion of us originated loans – many of them toxic – were bought by ED banks. So to strengthen our banks the council welcomed the comprehensive action on liquidity, capital and funding guarantees of our government and of the euro zone countries under the leadership of President Sarkozy, President Barroso and, ECB President, Jean-Claude Trichet.

    The council also welcomed the joint commitment from the leaders of the G8 countries to hold a leaders’ meeting and agreed the principles and priority areas for global action.

    Mr Speaker, stage one to recovery has been to stabilise financial markets thereby securing a resumption of lending.

    In Britain almost 50 billion pounds has been injected as capital into our banks.

    The government alone has taken shares worth 37 billion in two of our largest banks. And across the world more than 300 billion pounds has now been approved from public funds to recapitalise banks.

    At the heart of the British decision was that medium term funding was conditional on bank recapitalisation. And we also welcome the agreement of the council that EU countries will provide medium term state guarantees for new interbank loans.

    And I particularly welcome the decision of the European investment bank, following my initial proposals at the G4 summit in Paris earlier this month, to mobilise and frontload 30 billion Euros to support new lending to Europe’s, and Britain’s, small businesses.

    However, confidence today depends also on there being confidence about the future. So we agreed on the need to achieve a reform of the global financial system based upon five principles – transparency, integrity, responsibility, sound banking practice and global governance with coordination across borders.

    Mr Speaker, we will submit a detailed set of proposals to the international leaders meeting. I will be putting these proposals to all countries – including emerging countries. And I have already put them to president bush and will be putting them to both presidential candidates in the US.

    I can tell the house today that these include:

    • Insisting on openness and disclosure, with off balance sheet vehicles brought back on to balance sheets, greater transparency around the use of credit derivatives and a rapid adoption of internationally agreed accounting standards so that value-impaired assets can no longer be hidden.
    • Removing once and for all the conflicts of interest which have distorted behaviour and undermined trust so that credit rating agencies no longer act as advisers to the companies they rate and executive remuneration rewards not excessive or irresponsible risk taking but hard work, enterprise, effort and responsible risk taking.
    • Ensuring board members have the competence and expertise to manage the risks for which they are ultimately responsible – and cannot walk away from their obligations.
    • Regulation which looks at both solvency and liquidity and ensures the financial system supports wider economic stability.
    • And a new international architecture for the global financial sector
    for the years ahead.

    So we want to move to early decisions with our international partners about:

    • Reform of the international monetary fund and financial stability forum, including the creation of an early warning system for the global economy
    • Globally accepted standards of supervision applied equally and consistently in all countries.
    • Effective cross-border supervision of global firms – starting with establishing 30 international colleges of supervisors by the end of this year.
    • Cross border co-operation and concerted action in a crisis

    And we also want to see greater global macroeconomic co-ordination and to prevent the return of protectionism we want to see the reopening of the world trade talks. And I welcome the proposals from Australian Prime Minister Rudd.

    Mr Speaker, the events of the last few days have demonstrated that we need urgently to deploy in Eastern Europe and emerging markets the IMF’s facilities and resources to the fullest extent – and also those of the multilateral development banks:

    • To prevent capital flight;
    • To engage in and support counter cyclical policies;
    • And to finance domestic growth where exports are declining and capital has flown outwards.

    And we need urgently to consider creating a new IMF facility for emerging economies in the current crisis.

    Rescuing eastern European countries is particularly urgent and I have asked the European bank for reconstruction and development, the European investment bank and the World Bank to consider what they can do.

    Mr Speaker, the council also discussed in detail how each of our economies was being affected by the global economic downturn that started in America.

    Had we not acted to stabilise the banking system the effect on households and businesses would have been even more severe; but notwithstanding the action that has been taken the world is facing a severe global economic downturn with negative growth already seen in France, Germany and Italy this year and in the US last year.

    The UK cannot insulate itself from this global downturn, but with interest rates low and falling and inflation expected to come down over the next year, our underlying economic indicators are stronger than at any other previous downturn and debt has been considerably lower than a decade ago and lower than all G7 countries except Canada – enabling the government to increase borrowing at the right time to support the economy.

    The Government will do whatever it takes for mortgage holders, for small firms and for employees to help families and business through what will undoubtedly be a difficult period ahead.

    Like all governments across the world we are considering how fiscal policy can support the economy at this time, carefully targeted rigorously worked through investments that help people fairly through the downturn and lay the foundations for stronger growth in the future. And in Britain’s case we start from the position of low public debt. So we will bring the same focus and determination to the task of safeguarding jobs and homes and small business as we did to avert the threatened meltdown of financial systems.

    Mr Speaker,this will be the central mission of the government over the coming weeks and months. And I welcome the support in the national interest of all prepared to give that support. And let us be clear: it is also action that we take globally to get to the root of the problem in global banking that will make the biggest difference.

    Mr Speaker, the council also reached important conclusions on energy and climate change; on Russia and Georgia and on the European pact on immigration and asylum.

    Next year in Copenhagen, the world has an historic opportunity to secure prosperity for generations ahead with international action on climate change.

    While there are those who will seek to use current global financial problems as an excuse to pull back from change, to pull up the drawbridge and renege on commitments, in fact, it is now more essential than ever before to push forwards with our ambitious agenda on energy security and climate change.

    As the Stern Report showed, weak or delayed action will cost us all more in the years to come, both financially and economically.

    The council reaffirmed its commitment to reach agreement by December on its energy and climate change package for 2020. We made clear the importance in doing so of achieving a fair balance – with all member states accepting new commitments; that there must be flexibility for member states to meet targets in the most cost-effective way; and that Europe’s package must send the strongest possible signal to encourage the rest of the world to aim high at the Copenhagen summit next year.

    Mr Speaker, as last week’s statement from my Rt. Hon Friend, the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change made clear, this government is committed to the most ambitious targets – cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 80% by the middle of this century. Not just for the future of our environment – but as a crucial part of our strategy for energy security.

    But we cannot fulfil our aspirations for climate change without nuclear power and European and international co-operation. And that is why we will fully engage with the European Union on the environment and not pursue a policy based on unilateralism and detachment.

    Faced with historically high and volatile oil prices, it is more essential than ever before that we act to end our dependency on oil.

    The council looked for:

    • Greater diversification of energy sources
    • The completion of fully functioning EU energy markets
    • And improved critical energy infrastructure, for example, in the southern corridor. Our London energy meeting in December will seek to drive forward progress in the critical dialogue between oil producing and oil consuming nations.

    And today I would urge OPEC at its meeting on Friday to work through dialogue with consumer countries to stabilise the energy market as a whole. Mr Speaker, the council has expressed its grave concern over Russia’s actions in Georgia and called on all sides to implement in full the six-point plan agreed with European leaders.

    The council therefore welcomed the withdrawal of Russian troops as an essential additional step in the implementation of the agreements of 12th August and 8th September; and the launching in Geneva of the international discussions provided for by those agreements.

    Mr Speaker, the council and commission will continue to make a full in-depth evaluation of relations with Russia ahead of the EU-Russia summit in nice next month.

    The council also resolved to continue to support its eastern neighbours in their efforts to achieve democracy and economic modernisation and to consider a future EU “eastern partnership.”

    Finally, the council considered the European pact on immigration and asylum, underlining the importance of ensuring coherence between union policies, including free movement.

    Mr Speaker, Britain and Europe benefits economically from free movement – but free movement cannot be an unfettered right. It must bring with it clear responsibilities – with failure to meet them carrying clear consequences including, where appropriate, the loss of that right entirely.

    I discussed this point in further detail with a number of European leaders in the margins of the council, building considerable support across member states and agreement to look further at the responsibilities associated with free movement where crimes are committed by EU residents in the EU but outside their country of origin – and to return to this issue in December.

    Mr Speaker, this summit showed that in facing global challenges, whether the credit crunch, climate change or energy security, we succeed best not in isolation but in co-operation, not with unilateralism and separation from our European neighbours but in active partnership with them. And that is why our policy will rightly remain one of being fully engaged at the centre of Europe.

    And I commend this statement to the House.

  • Gordon Brown – 2008 Speech in Doha

    Gordon Brown – 2008 Speech in Doha

    The speech made by Gordon Brown, the then Prime Minister, on 2 November 2008.

    Can I say first of all what a privilege it is to be in Qatar, to be able to congratulate the Emir and the Prime Minister on their leadership, their leadership in Lebanon where they have brought about peace, their leadership in Sudan and Darfur where they are leading the way, their leadership in the development round where the Doha Conference will take place in a few days, and that is as a result of the Emir and the Prime Minister. And I want to thank them on behalf of all the citizens of the United Kingdom.

    I am delighted to be visiting Qatar because I believe that this great country is leading the world in so many different ways. The diversification out of oil into other products is something that is being sponsored by innovation that is taking place here, and I had the privilege of visiting the Qatar Foundation and being able to see its work and I do congratulate the Foundation on its cultural and intellectual projects round the world.

    I think cooperation between our two countries is growing.  I am very pleased that we are able to announce the new Investment Fund that is being created today, that is the Clean Technology Investment Fund which is worth  £250 million, a joint fund between Qatar and the United Kingdom, £140 million from Qatar, the rest from the Carbon Trust and the private sector, and this will be funding for investment in companies developing a wide range of low carbon technologies, and it is right that we cooperate on how we can make the energy resources of our countries do better for us in the future.

    This relationship between Qatar and Britain is also being extended by university cooperation. Oxford University, Cambridge University, the University College London, Imperial College, are all parts of projects that are now developing here, and many businesses are here with us today with an interest in developing strong relations for the future.

    We talked also, as the Prime Minister has said, about how we can work together to deal with the world’s financial difficulties.  I believe it is only by cooperation internationally that we can best solve the problems that exist at the moment. And whatever the causes of the problems, the most important thing is that we cooperate to find the solutions to the benefit of our people, people who are worried about their savings, worried about mortgages, worried about their small businesses, people who are worried about the cost of their bills, I think it is important that world leaders come together.  And I believe we share an understanding of what needs to be done and that will go forward into the international arena where we are determined to work together for a solution to the problems that exist.

    Once again let me praise the Prime Minister of Qatar who has been so instrumental in bringing about peace in Lebanon and is also working to bring about peace in Darfur and Sudan, as well as running one of the more successful economies in the world.

  • Gordon Brown – 2008 Comments Following Barack Obama’s Election Victory

    Gordon Brown – 2008 Comments Following Barack Obama’s Election Victory

    The comments made by Gordon Brown, the then Prime Minister, on 5 November 2008.

    I would like to offer my sincere congratulations to Barack Obama on winning the Presidency of the United States. I would also like to pay tribute to Senator McCain who fought a good campaign and has shown the characteristic dignity that has marked a lifetime of service to his country.

    The relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom is vital to our prosperity and security. Barack Obama ran an inspirational campaign, energising politics with his progressive values and his vision for the future. I know Barack Obama and we share many values. We both have determination to show that government can act to help people fairly through these difficult times facing the global economy. And I look forward to working extremely closely with him in the coming months and years.

  • Gordon Brown – 2008 Speech at the Lord Mayor’s Banquet

    Gordon Brown – 2008 Speech at the Lord Mayor’s Banquet

    The speech made by Gordon Brown, the then Prime Minister, at the Guildhall in London on 10 November 2008.

    My Lord Mayor, my late Lord Mayor, your Grace, my Lord Chancellor, your Excellencies, my Lords, Aldermen, Sheriffs, Chief Commoner, ladies and gentlemen.

    These last weeks and months will be studied by generations to come.

    Historians will look back and say this was no ordinary time but a defining moment: an unprecedented period of global change, a time when one chapter ended and another began – for nations; for continents; for the whole world.

    To us falls the challenge of leading Britain through the first financial crisis of this new global age and, as reflected in the huge volatility in the price of commodities, its first resources crisis too.

    But these crises reflect underlying and unprecedented transformations in our world:

    · the rise of Asia and the shift of global manufacturing power;
    · growing resource pressures – from oil to food
    · the undeniable reality of climate change;
    · and new political instabilities and conflicts

    All accompanied by the growing gap between rich and poor countries; and of course by the impact of new technology and the rise of the internet giving millions of people for the first time the ability to communicate, do business and organise across frontiers.

    The range, complexity and impact of these forces underline just how much we are taking the first tentative steps towards what i will call a global society. And that what is at stake now is not just the success and legitimacy of our global economy but ultimately the prosperity and security of nations and communities in every corner of the world.

    The decisions we make now will re-shape our societies ——in all probability for decades and more.

    And we have a choice: to retreat or advance; to turn inwards or to look outwards; to be cowed by our fears or led by our hopes.

    The world today can seem a daunting place – and when people feel buffeted or bewildered by the scale of the changes it can seem easy to retreat into the outworn and failed responses of yesterday — to a time of pessimism, protectionism and retrenchment.

    But we could make a far better choice.

    I want this to become the moment when together we rise to the new challenges by purposeful visionary and international leadership, leaving behind the orthodoxies of yesterday and embracing new ideas to create a better tomorrow: not as victims of history but as shapers of an open, free trade, flexible globalisation that is also inclusive and sustainable.

    For while today so much looks grey or dark in the global economy we should not forget that we are in the midst of an economic transition to a new global age: whatever happens now, it is likely that in the next two decades the world economy will double in size. And that means twice as many opportunities for good businesses and twice as many opportunities for men and women with new ideas to market.  And as many as one thousand million new jobs for skilled workers will be created.  So this is the other side of globalisation – not just the insecurities we know about but the opportunities, the promise it holds for tomorrow.

    And it is, indeed, possible to see the threats and challenges we face today as the difficult birth-pangs of a new global order – and our task now nothing less than making the transition through a new internationalism to a more collegial, collaborative and opportunity-rich global society, not muddling through as pessimists but, as optimists, making the necessary adjustment to a better future

    Since the financial crisis began it has dominated the agenda. I have travelled perhaps more than i had planned to. But all in the protection of the British economy, British jobs and firms, British living standards —-knowing the livelihoods of British families and businesses are shaped in an ever more interdependent world.

    And so we can see this year as definitive in another way: the year where we not only came to recognise our deep and irreversible interdependence, each nation with other nations, but acted upon it:  nations agreeing not just on high aspirations but on practical actions; governments ready to act collectively and quickly to take radical – indeed previously unthinkable – measures to avert global meltdown; discovering a common purpose amid the necessity of dealing with the financial crisis; a common approach forged first to deal with the financial crisis but one that will, I believe, enable us to respond  positively also to climate change, conflict and poverty.  And in doing so to build the confidence in the future that is key to bringing back confidence today.

    So, while I see a world that is facing financial crisis and still diminished by conflict and injustice, I also see the chance to forge a new multilateralism that is both hard-headed and progressive. And I believe that in our international co-operation on finance, climate change, terrorism and ending conflict, there is evidence of this new multilateralism at work in the world: fairer, more stable, and more prosperous because it is rooted in cooperation and justice.

    And if we learn from our experience of turning unity of purpose into unity of action, together we can seize this moment of profound change to create, for the first time, the age of the truly global society —-one where progressive multilateralism, not narrow unilateralism, is the norm; one where people find that what unites them is far greater that what ever divided them; and where it is co-operation, not confrontation, that flourishes in answer to age-old challenges:

    · the challenge to reassert our faith in the advance of democracy as the most effective weapon in our arsenal against terrorism and tyranny.

    · and — as we mark armistice day tomorrow and remember the sacrifices made in darker times – the challenge to build for peace

    · the challenge to build consensus for a new global financial system

    · the need to confront the realities of global climate change by building a sustainable low carbon economy

    · and to make a reality of the vision of a global society by creating global partnerships across public, private and voluntary sectors to address poverty and move toward economic justice.

    I believe that we in the west should approach these great challenges of our time with some humility. The west certainly does not have all the answers to them. We need more than the G8 – for the time when just a few powers could sit around the table and set the global agenda is over.

    Quite rightly, the emerging powers of the 21st century will want to – and must – play their part. And so the G8, the IMF and the World Bank must change to meet the new realities.

    But my central argument this evening is that the alliance between Britain and America – and more broadly between Europe and America – can and must provide leadership in this, not in order to make and impose the rules ourselves, but to lead and broaden the global effort to build a stronger, secure and more equitable international order.

    Rightly people talk of a special relationship: but that special relationship is also a partnership for a purpose. The transatlantic relationship has been the engine of effective multilateralism for the past 50 years. Together

    · we faced down aggression and dictatorship;
    · in a few short years we built the great international post-war institutions – the World Bank, the international monetary fund, the United Nations.
    · and we led the drive for trade, enterprise and dynamic markets.

    Now unprecedented events have brought a turn of history that few would once have foreseen or expected.

    Just days ago, across the Atlantic, our closest ally gave new meaning to its founding creed that all “are created equal.” Gave new strength to the notion that the american dream is for all Americans.

    More than 140 years after the abolition of slavery; and more than forty years on from the civil rights and voting rights acts; America has chosen Barack Obama to be President.

    And – as we have seen from reaction in America, Europe and around the globe – whatever one’s politics, it can surely only be a source of hope and inspiration that a nation which once would have looked at Barack Obama and defined him only by his colour today sees in him the man they want to be their President and Commander-in-chief.

    And when Barack Obama four months ago followed in President Kennedy’s footsteps and went to Berlin he called on the world to stand together as one.

    Winston Churchill described the joint inheritance of Britain and America – as not just a shared history but a shared belief in the great principles of freedom and the rights of man – of what Barack Obama described in his election night speech as the enduring power of our ideals: democracy, liberty, opportunity, and unyielding hope.

    And as America stands at its own dawn of hope – so let that hope be fulfilled through a pact with the wider world to lead and shape the twenty-first century as the first century of a truly global society.

    And i believe that with the farsighted leadership we have in Europe, the whole of Europe can and will work closely with America and with the rest of the world to meet the great challenges which will illuminate our convictions and test our resolution.

    First – we must reassert our faith in democracy and be confident in our belief that open, plural, diverse societies are those most likely to stay rich, strong and free.

    So we must step up and win the battle of ideas against terrorism and extremism not by sacrificing the liberties that they scorn but by securing new international means of achieving stability, reconstruction and democracy in failed and fragile states.

    And we must promote greater tolerance and understanding within and between communities. Later this week I will join King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia alongside president bush and other World Leaders for his interfaith dialogue at the United Nations – deepening understanding between religions and countering extremist ideologies.

    Second let us move quickly to complement the role of peacekeepers and aid workers through civilian as well as military assistance, to rebuild conflict-ridden and fragile states.

    Just as we will continue to offer immediate help and advance the cause of peace in Darfur, Burma and Zimbabwe, and stand up for the democracies of Georgia and Ukraine, we will stand by the people of the Democratic Republic of Congo as they face new conflict and turmoil. We will get aid to those who need it. We will protect those who are threatened ——by ensuring that UN peacekeepers, already the largest force of its kind in the world, are properly led, trained and enabled. And we will work relentlessly to build the political settlement that is the only guarantee of long term peace.

    Ultimately our shared security should be based not on the increased use of weapons but on their reduction. At this same occasion last year, I described the leading role I saw for our country in reducing the proliferation of weapons.

    I am pleased that one hundred countries have joined us in banning cluster bombs; and that the idea of a multinational fuel bank to help non-nuclear states acquire nuclear energy is gaining support.

    And working with our allies we are ready to do more: having extended export prohibitions on trafficking in small arms, we are ready to promote a new arms trade treaty. And I say to Iran which has signed the non proliferation treaty: in these new circumstances rejoin global society and benefit from help in acquiring civil nuclear power – or face new sanctions –and growing isolation.

    Conflict in the Middle East and the failure to restore a Palestinian state is a festering wound that has for generations poisoned relations between the west and the Arab and Islamic world. But I believe, and I have heard for myself, that the elements that can constitute a settlement are now well understood by those on all sides who want to come together to end the divisions of the past. It has often been said that an historic hard-won and lasting peace is now within our grasp. But what I do know is that building on the work of President Bush, that durable and just settlement is an urgent priority for the new us administration – and the UK will stand firm in support.

    A Middle East settlement has the potential to transform the future of the Middle East. In Iraq we continue to defend a new democracy and last summer we set out the remaining tasks to be achieved there to make possible a fundamental change of mission and the transition to a long term bilateral partnership with Iraq, similar to the normal relationships which our military forces have with other countries in the region. And we are making good progress with each of our objectives.

    And I welcome the reaffirmed commitment from both president bush and President-elect Obama to defend a stable and democratic future for Afghanistan and to review the best ways of achieving this through better burden-sharing: America at its best – leading a broad international effort underpinned by shared values, working more effectively with the grain of Afghan society including the tribes; working with our allies to double the size of the Afghan army, working with President Karzai to tackle corruption and supporting the democratic Afghan government in its slow but steady attempts to build peace. And we will support the Afghan and Pakistan governments in working together to tackle the security issues across the border which the last decade has shown are crucial to our own security at home.

    Afghanistan is a test the international community cannot afford to fail. And we will not fail.

    Third – seventy-five years ago at a time of recession nations met in London in a World economic conference- and because the talks broke up in failure the world entered a long decade of protectionism and retrenchment.

    In Washington this weekend, the British government will work with its G20 partners to establish consensus and begin to build a new bretton woods with a reformed, modern, IMF that offers, by its surveillance of every economy, an early warning system and a crisis prevention mechanism for the whole world.

    This will require:

    · The recapitalisation of banks and their resumption of lending to families and businesses

    · Immediate action to stop the spread of the financial crisis to middle income countries, building agreement for a new facility and new resources for the IMF

    · urgent agreement on a trade deal and rejection of beggar-thy-neighbour protectionism that has been a feature in turning past crises into deep recessions

    · a restoration of confidence by addressing the root causes of the instability through reform of the global financial system based on the principles of transparency, integrity, responsibility, sound banking practice and global governance with co-ordination across borders and every nation playing its part

    · better International coordination of fiscal and monetary policy – recognising the immediate importance of this coordination for stimulating economic activity.

    At the heart of this is a growing agreement that at a time of change and massive uncertainty, people look to governments for action. This is no time for conventional old thinking or tired old orthodoxies.

    In Britain, we have already cut taxes to help families this year. And as the chancellor has said, we will maintain our essential public investments while continuing to increase the value for money of every pound spent. This is no time for the old approach of short-term spending cuts in a downturn that would hurt families and businesses today and damage the long-term productivity of the economy.

    Since this is a global downturn it requires a global solution. As was the case with the bank stabilisation plan, the benefits of any individual country’s fiscal actions will be all the greater if this is part of a concerted and fairly distributed international response to maintain global demand.

    There is now a growing international consensus that, especially for those countries with low debt like the UK, maintaining essential public investment is the right and sensible approach, while allowing a temporary and affordable increase in borrowing to support economic growth.

    Yesterday China announced that it was injecting almost $600 billion to support its economy. The European Union has said that flexibility in the stability pact to recognise exceptional and temporary conditions will be used. Last week, Germany announced their plans for a fiscal stimulus. President-elect Obama has already signalled his intention to do likewise. With Britain continuing to lead the debate, economic recovery will work better if we all work together.

    The fourth imperative is tackling climate change.

    For it is clear now that if left unchecked, climate change will have catastrophic worldwide effects on our future prosperity

    The G8 has already agreed we must at least halve global emissions by 2050.  But this also means emissions must peak by 2020.

    So we cannot afford to put climate change into the international ‘pending’ tray because of the present economic difficulties, as some might urge.

    On the contrary, we must use the imperative to act for our future prosperity through the transition to a low carbon economy and reduced oil dependency as a route to creating jobs and economic opportunity for our peoples today.

    This is why as we prepare for an ambitious post 2012 climate change agreement in Copenhagen, for which I pledge our governments unbending commitment,  the European Union must, and I believe will, agree in December its ‘2020’ programme for energy and climate change and show European Leadership at its best. And I want the World Bank to become a bank for the environment as well as for development, helping developing countries move towards sustainable energy paths of their own.

    And a truly global society cannot of course exist without the vital humanitarian and development assistance and support for self sustaining growth that keeps millions of people alive and meets basic needs for education, food and health. For we cannot claim to be a truly global society, or one world, when 30,000 children die every day from diseases we know how to cure.

    This is not the time to abandon helping the poorest countries. For now more than ever it is both our duty and in our interest to help meet the millennium development goals. For we cannot solve climate change without Africa; nor can we solve the food crisis without Africa.  We need a fully financed ‘energy for the poor’ initiative; where commercial sources of capital dry up support from the international institutions; and we need to support agricultural development. In Africa in the past, “feed the world” meant that we helped to feed Africa.  In future, if we do things right, we will do best by enabling Africa to feed the world.

    And I am proud that, even as the world came to terms with the financial crisis, Britain has continued to drive forward the vital effort to meet the Millennium Development goals.

    Tonight I have argued that uniquely in this global age, it is now in our power to come together, confer, and decide and that we must be guided by one clear truth: that we need solutions that can no longer be defined in terms of us and them, but can be achieved only together: as us with them.  I believe that people do not only co-operate out of need. There is a human need to cooperate. But I believe also that all our efforts reflect what people find when they can communicate across continents with each other; that there is a shared moral sense that we are responsible each to the other  – country to country as much as person to person. And because of this no injustice can last for ever, and even in the most desperate of circumstances people can journey with hope.

    So my message is that we must be:

    · internationalist not protectionist

    · interventionist not isolationist

    · progressive not paralysed by events

    · and forward-thinking not trapped in the solutions of the past

    And if we do so 2008 will be remembered not just for a financial crash that engulfed the world but for the decisiveness and optimism with which the world faced the storm, endured it and prevailed. And remembered too for how in doing so we discovered and refashioned the global power of nations working together.

    President Roosevelt famously said “the only thing we have to fear is fear itself.”

    When fear overwhelms our perceptions of reality the effect is paralysing; it leaves people frozen into inaction – helpless at a time of great risk — and even at a time of great opportunity too.

    But confidence in the future –that most precious asset of all – is the key to bringing back confidence today. It is dynamic, it heralds action.

    And – for reasons I have laid before you this evening – I am confident.

    Confident that we can seize the moment, grasp it together, and use it to lay the foundations – optimistic, multilateralist and inclusive – on which we can build the first truly global society.

  • Gordon Brown – 2009 Webchat on Afghanistan

    Gordon Brown – 2009 Webchat on Afghanistan

    The text of the webchat with Gordon Brown on Afghanistan on 14 December 2009.

    The Prime Minister took part in a live webchat this morning – his first on the Number 10 website – on the issue of building a stable Afghanistan.

    The PM’s webchat follows his weekend visit to Afghanistan where he met British forces and held talks with President Karzai.

    Read the transcript:

    Moderator says: Good morning. Welcome to the webchat. The Prime Minister will be joining us very shortly.

    Sue Pritchard: The history of the region tells us that external interventions do not create, let alone sustain, stability, peace or prosperity. What’s different this time?

    Gordon replies: Hello, Gordon Brown here.  I returned in the early hours of this morning from visiting British troops in Afghanistan.  As we approach Christmas I wanted to thank them for their courageous service and to tell them that the people back home were in awe of their acheivements.

    To answer your question Sue, we know that the Taleban do not have the support of the Afghan people.  And above all we know that a stable Afghanistan means a safer Britain.  So the question is whether we can help the Afghan people build a stable, democratic and prosperous future – so it is right to train their forces, police and security services so they can take control of the security of their country for themselves.

    stacey hemming: I know there is a lot of negative press and views regarding Afghan, with pressure to be pulled out. My husband is currently serving over there and I just want to say that I’m proud and don’t want them to be pulled out until the job is finished. Like many, we don’t want the losses we have suffered to be for nothing. I support you, I support our forces. It would be nice if you would stand tall and tell everyone that your not backing down and we will finish the job and do our fallen soldiers proud.

    Gordon replies: Stacey, I don’t know if I have met your husband but he is clearly a brave and dedicated man who is making an important contribution to this important mission.  We have a job to do to destroy the attempt by Al Qaeda to attack the streets of Britain and to prevent the Taleban from offering them safehaven in Afghanistan.  We have just stepped up the number of forces dedicated to this job and are now training the Afghan forces so they can take on the role of maintaining the security.  We will never forget the sacrifice of those who have given their lives.

    hanif rehman: Plz say a thank you to the troops. Secondly, has the PM thought of spending more on infrastructure i.e.schools and roads rather than sending more troops. Or does he feel constrained by level of corruption in Afg?

    Gordon replies: Hanif

    We’re doing both.  Our military and our civilian stabilisation advisors are working very closely together.  There are double the amount of health services in Helmand than 3 years ago and more than a hundred schools open in Helmand, over half in the last year.

    On corruption, President Karzai has given me and the international community assurances that he will work to tackle corruption and at the London Conference on Jan 28th next year we will be asking him for updates on progress.  Of course it is about delivery not just words and we will be vigilant in seeking action.

    khasail: How did you come to the decision of sending more troops into afghanistan in the middle of a recesion?

    Gordon replies: Some of you have asked similar questions so to answer, the terrorist threat to the UK is real.  We cannot allow the Taleban to again give space to Al Qaeda to operate in Afghanistan.  This is not a conflict of choice, it is about necessity.  And all 43 nations of the coalition agree.  Our additional 500 troops will be complemented by more than 35000 from the US and other countries.  It is vital that our troops have the resources to do the job at hand.

    Ben Blankley: Can there ever be a military solution that will stop the 1 in 4 Afghan children dying before their fifth birthday?

    Gordon replies: Already the child mortality rate has been cut.  The estimate is that now 100,000 children under 5 who would have otherwise died are now kept alive by better healthcare.  This is because of British and other international countries paying for programmes to immunise children, to pay nurses, midwives and doctors and to make healthcare sustainable.

    Glen Oglaza Sky News: Since Afghanistan is and always has been “tribal”, training Afghan army and police recruits who are mostly Tajik will not hold sway with the majority Pushtuns so How can the NATO effort stop the country simply sliding back into the old ways of rival warlords and the re-emergence of the Taliban? And was President Obama wrong to give an exit date – and a date for the Taliban to take back control?

    Gordon replies: I met Afghan troops being trained by British troops in Helmand yesterday.  They came from every region of Afghanistan and showed it is possible to build a national army that is both professional and united.  They are ready to take on the Taleban and the Afghan army will rise in number to 135,000 over the next year.  And I discussed this very issue with the President of Afghanistan and the defence minister who are committed to this strategy.

    The issue is the Afghan army, security forces and police gradually taking control and it is at that point that our forces can start to come home.

    Sarah Taylor: In reply to Hanif Rehman, I am the wife of a Royal Engineer and I can assure you that he is kept very busy in Afghanistan by helping the infrastructure. Recently completing an access road which will allow local people to travel more freely to and from school.

    Gordon replies: Thank you for that Sarah.  This is vital work and I’m very proud that your husband has made such a big contribution to the future of Aghanistan.

    Jim Aldus: Until quite recently, your government has been saying that the troops have had all the equipment they need or have asked for to do the job in Afghanistan. If that’s the case, why is more specialised equipment being sent to deal with roadside IEDs that have been used by the Taliban since before the invasion?

    Gordon replies: Jim

    We are always adjusting to the threat that is posed to our forces by getting the best equipment to deal with it.  Over the last year the Taleban have increasingly used explosive devices rather than fight the British army face to face where they know they would lose, and the types of devices are always changing.  So to deal with that threat we have increased our specialist forces, our electronic surveillance, our intelligence and our hand held detectors and we have dismantled around 1500 IEDs in the recent months.  It is right we respond to the threat with the best equipment.

    pedro: If the russians couldnt succeed in many years in afganistan, what makes you think that uk efforts will?

    Gordon replies: The Russians didn’t have the popular support of the people for what they were trying to do  – they were working against, not with or for the Afghan people.  Our strategy is to partner the Afghan forces and we are clear that this is not an army of occupation.

    Tom W: We can’t pull out until the job is finished, but this could result in us being in Afghanistan for decades to come, because the goal is not very clear-cut. How will you asses when the job is done?

    Gordon replies: When Afghanistan is able to run its own affairs free of the Taleban and Al Qaeda.

    Nigel F: Will you continue sending personal letters to relatives of the fallen, despite the (unfair) criticism you received?

    Gordon replies: Nigel.

    Yes I will.  And I understand the feelings who have lost loved ones and it is their concerns that are uppermost in my thoughts.

    Thomas Oliver Bromfield: As a ex serviceman,can you reassure me that all the help possible will be provided to the wounded serviceman?

    Gordon replies: Thomas, thank you for your question.  Yes, I saw the medical facilities at Camp Bastion yesterday.  The staff and the equipment are the best in the world.  I am also determined that all the care we can provide at Selly Oak and in other hospitals is the best.  I recognise the enormous sacrifice people make on behalf of our country and thank them all.

    Asli Aral: What will be the main aim/purpose of the London Afghanistan conference on Jan. 28th?

    Gordon replies: Asli

    To get more support for our Afghanistan strategy to train, mentor and partner the Afghan secuirty forces and to help the economy and people of Afghanistan to get a bigger stake in their own future.  President Karzai will bring forward his plan for the future of Afghanistan for discussion at the conference.

    tony: If all 43 nations of the coalition agree about the necessity of this war is it not time that British service personal were replaced by the service personel of another country in Helmand Province and let them have a spell of death and destruction?

    Gordon replies: Our NATO and coalition allies are offering more troops, including the US who are offering 30,000 more and around 5000 from the non-US allies.

    English: Why don’t “we” start buying the Opium? There are several reasons why they should. It would establish peaceful trade with farmers (who can grow little else), it starves the Taliban of recruits and funds, it keeps heroin off our streets, it solves the world shortage in opium. The current “strategy” of burning farmers crops only strengthens the Taliban by supplying angry ex farmers.

    Gordon replies: The UN and most people looking at this oppose this policy as they believe farmers would simply multiply the amount of opium they produce.

    Harry: When the troops leave Afghanistan, what legacy would you ideally like to leave on the Afghani people and how reachable do you think this is? Also, in terms of percentage, what population of the Afghani people do you believe are truly behind what our troops are doing in Afghanistan?

    Gordon replies: A stable Afghanistan in which the army and police can deal with security and terrorism and where the people have a stake in their future.

    Sam Ornbo: How close are we to finding Osama Bin Laden?

    Gordon replies: Sam

    In the last year 8 of the leading figures in Al Qaeda have been killed.  Al Qaeda is being seriously disrupted by the actions in Afghanistan and in Pakistan.  At present we have no specific knowledge about Osama Bin Laden but we continue to hunt him down.

    James Kirkup – Daily Telegraph: Do you have any concerns about public support for the deployment? There’s clearly very strong sympathy for Armed Forces personnel, but does it worry you that a significant proportion of the electorate appear to want a quick or even immediate withdrawal? And could signs of public unease over the mission actually embolden the Taliban and persuade them that they can break Britain’s resolve to stay?

    Gordon replies: Morale in Afghanistan amongst our troops I found to be very high indeed.  They know they are doing an important job to defeat the Taleban to help security in the UK.  I believe that when people at home see why we are there – to defeat terrorism and see our strategy to train and partner Afghan forces so we can hand over security control, they understand that we have no intention of being an army of occupation, that the mission is vital and that our forces will stay until the job is done.  The soldiers I met are very proud to be playing their part.

    Mike Naylor: When will a Government Minister meet the bodies of brave service persomnnel when they are re-patriated?

    Gordon replies: Everything Ministers do is on the advice of our service chiefs and in accordance with the wishes of the families who have lost loved ones. I try to write to every family that has suffered these tragic losses. We do indeed owe everyone who has given their life for our country and their families our thanks and gratitude. Our forces are the best in the world.

    Thank you to everyone for taking the time to send in your questions.  I am sorry I’m unable to answer more but I hope you have found it useful.

    Gordon.

  • Gordon Brown – 2010 Letter to Medical Aid for Palestinians

    Gordon Brown – 2010 Letter to Medical Aid for Palestinians

    The letter sent by Gordon Brown, the then Prime Minister, to Medical Aid for Palestinians on 1 January 2010.

    Dear Friends

    Your open letter to me of 27 December in The Observer was right to draw attention to the grave humanitarian situation in Gaza, one year after a conflict that cost over a thousand Palestinian lives and those of over ten Israelis.

    As I have made clear repeatedly to the Israeli government, it is unacceptable that Israel continues to prevent aid from reaching those who so badly need it in Gaza. EU Foreign Ministers reinforced our call for full humanitarian access earlier this month.

    Alongside diplomatic pressure, I pledge that the UK will remain in the forefront of the humanitarian effort. Following the offensive a year ago, we spent £20 million on humanitarian aid for the people of Gaza.

    And on 28 December, Douglas Alexander announced a total package of £53.5 million for Palestine, with a particular focus on Gaza – including £5 million of new funding for the United Nations’ work with Gazan refugees.

    While Hamas’ actions can be no justification for preventing aid reaching the people of Gaza, Hamas must remove the menace of rocket attacks against the people of southern Israel, and release Gilad Shalit.

    Ultimately, we can only give the people of Gaza real hope when genuine negotiations bring a lasting and just peace settlement. The parameters of such a potential agreement are clear. In the coming year, we must pursue still more vigorously a comprehensive peace based on secure and viable states of Israel and Palestine. For all of our futures, those who oppose justice and peace for the peoples of the region must not be allowed to prevail.

    Yours sincerely

    Gordon Brown

  • Gordon Brown – 2010 Comments on the 20th Anniversary of the Release of Nelson Mandela

    Gordon Brown – 2010 Comments on the 20th Anniversary of the Release of Nelson Mandela

    The comments made by Gordon Brown, the then Prime Minister, on 11 February 2010.

    Meeting Nelson Mandela for the first time was one of the proudest moments of my life. It felt a long way from my first engagement in his cause when I was Editor of my student newspaper and breaking a story about the University’s investments in apartheid South Africa. I didn’t know then that there would be a wave of campus occupations, and our University like so many others would be forced to disinvest, or that for the next 20 years as a student, a trade unionist, an MP and then a shadow minister I would remain involved in the campaign against this despicable racist regime.

    I don’t think any of us will ever forget where we were on the day Nelson Mandela was freed. The first President of a rainbow South Africa, Madiba spent his life after prison not to recrimination and revenge, but to healing a divided nation in the service of his people.

    His story reminds us that that there is no corner of the earth so far away, no injustice so entrenched, no enemy so powerful that people of good conscience cannot campaign for change and win. Five years ago, Nelson Mandela addressed a crowd in Trafalgar Square and thanked the people of Britain for their solidarity during his imprisonment. On your behalves, I would like to thank him in turn. Because today – on the twentieth anniversary of his release – it is his example that gives us the hope to struggle anew for the justice and freedom for all people to which he has dedicated his life.

  • Peter Hain – 2000 Speech on Angola and the Responsibilities of Wealth

    Peter Hain – 2000 Speech on Angola and the Responsibilities of Wealth

    The speech made by Peter Hain, the then Minister of State at the Foreign Office, on 6 July 2000.

    I was born in Africa, and grew up in Pretoria where my parents were first jailed, then banned, then forced into exile in London where I continued their struggle as a leader of the British Anti-Apartheid movement.

    And now my job as British Minister for Africa gives me again the chance to make a difference. I am determined to do so. Our goal is a proud, safe, democratic, prosperous Africa. A self-confident Africa in which the views and aspirations of all Africans can be clearly heard, and fully taken into account.

    I have been to Angola before, in 1995. As now, it was strangled by war. Images of Huambo stay in my mind: Limbless, starving people. Every shop, office, and house gutted. Hopelessness and despair on peoples’ faces. The misery of the displaced. Thirty-five years of fighting fuelled first by the Cold War ideological clash between communism and capitalism, then by the pure greed of oil versus diamonds.

    During that visit I met the Government in Luanda. Then I flew deep into the bush to Bailundo, to meet Jonas Savimbi. He promised he would honour the United Nations peace agreement he had signed in Lusaka. But at the same time as he lied to me, he was re-arming, and the war started all over again. And still there is no end: the Angolan people deserve so much better.

    I am particularly pleased that so many members of Angola’s civil society are here. We usually hear talk only of the Government, of UNITA, of the United Nations. But civil society as a whole – press, NGOs, the churches, trade unions – all have a vital, perhaps a central, role to play in Angola’s future.

    Angola has suffered from slavery, from colonisation, from the geo political rivalries of the Cold War. But the past cannot continue to be used as an excuse. Angolans cannot allow themselves to be trapped by their history. Angolans must take responsibility for their future.

    In the past, foreign interests in the USA, South Africa and Europe supported UNITA and Savimbi to prolong the war for their own interests. Today I can assure you that this is not true for Britain. I hope it is no longer true for any other country. Some foreign individuals do profit from war in Angola by buying blood diamonds from Savimbi and selling arms and fuel. But there is no reason why Angolans should allow these evil people to control your destiny. If Angolans can find a just peace, no outsider should come between them and a secure and prosperous future. Your economy could develop. Your roads and hospitals could be rebuilt. Your children could be educated. You could travel freely throughout your beautiful country.

    The rest of us would benefit too. Britain would spend less on humanitarian aid and save money on the UN. British businesses would have new opportunities for investment and trade. Angola would become a dynamic force for stability and progress in Southern Africa, instead of a dark threat to the peace and prosperity of its neighbours.

    SANCTIONS

    But for this vision to become a reality, the war has to end. What can you do? What can we do to bring peace closer? The British Government’s view is that there are two major issues to be addressed. I will describe them here:

    First, Savimbi’s power to wage war has to be blocked by sanctions, vigorously enforced. We want to stop him selling his diamonds and block his supplies of fuel and munitions, until he is forced to lay down his arms as he promised in the Lusaka Protocol in 1994.

    I have been in the forefront of the international efforts to make sanctions effective. For as long as the fighting continues the British Government will seek to tighten the sanctions against UNITA, to cut off the outward flow of diamonds and inward flow of arms and fuel that sustains the misery of the Angolan people. And we will continue to expose those involved, however high or low: from African Presidents, to European arms and diamond dealers, to African based air companies – whatever their nationality. Their dirty trade deserves international condemnation. It is also illegal, so each of these individuals should be tracked down, publicly exposed and prosecuted. The diamond dealer in Belgium receiving UNITA’s blood diamonds helps to landmine children. The arms company in Bulgaria or Ukraine helps Savimbi to kill and maim. The European or South African pilot is just as culpable. Without these guilty people, the war would be over.

    Savimbi has repeatedly broken the United Nations peace agreements he has signed. So how can we trust his word again? Could he change? Could he contribute to the search for peace? I very much doubt it. Attacking convoys taking food and shelter to the displaced, planting mines to maim those who try to raise a crop, mutilating and killing unarmed villagers – these are not the actions of a leader with a cause who wants a better Angola for his people. They are the actions of a bloodthirsty tyrant who wants personal power at all costs.

    But UNITA needs to be part of a political debate about the future of Angola. It needs to have a new policy for peace. It must lay down its arms and play an active part in a dialogue about Angola’s future. Britain is willing to help achieve this. Too much is at stake. UNITA represents an important constituency in the country, politically, rurally and ethnically. Its voice deserves to be heard – but through ballot box not through the barrel of a gun.

    The world will not tolerate any more of Savimbi’s lies and obstructions. UNITA must be part of a political process and it must naturally honour any commitments it makes. To end such a long and bitter war everyone has to compromise. It will take courage on all sides. Agreements must be honoured in full. And I promise this: Britain along with other European Union countries will back such an agreement. We will support the Angolan people in their right to peace, to live a decent life, to begin farming properly again, to begin rebuilding their shattered country.

    GOOD GOVERNANCE, DEMOCRACY AND HUMAN RIGHTS

    The second issue is good governance, democracy and human rights. These have to be made a reality for all Angolans so that they can peacefully share in Angola’s prosperity.

    There must be space for the exchange of ideas, which is fundamental to democracy. Having different ideas about the best way forward does not mean disloyalty to the state. But the debate is not just between the MPLA and UNITA. There are other political parties. As important, there is civil society.

    A strong, independent civil society is very important to sustain a healthy democracy. In every society there are groups of people who come together because of their profession, their beliefs, their interests, their ideals.

    These formal and informal groups – churches, trades unions, humanitarian societies, human rights groups and many more – are each entitled to have their voices heard when they argue for what their members believe in. The more they are seen to live up to their own ideals, the more likely they are to gain the support of their fellow citizens. Although political parties are vital in a healthy democracy, civil society groups help connect government to the people. Open debate is good for our democracies.

    Of course, those of us in Government do not enjoy being criticised. As a Minister I know only too well what it feels like to see my name in the press or hear it on the television followed by critical or ill-informed comment. But that criticism is one of the guarantors of our democracy. I urge the Government to be bold in recognising the same in Angola. In any democracy there will be protest marches. (I used to organise marches myself years ago against apartheid!). And it is a rare journalist who thinks that the Government has got it absolutely right. Open discussion in an open society: that is the way forward to success.

    I have condemned the broken promises and murderous activities of Jonas Savimbi. But I have also felt able to speak honestly to President dos Santos and his Ministers and advisers about the evils of corruption. Angola is rich country made poor by corruption and dishonesty. Her wealth must benefit all her people not just a few. The money from oil and diamonds must go to new hospitals, schools, universities and technical institutes. It must build new roads, bridges and railways. It must be used to lift ordinary Angolans out of poverty, fear and dependency. And used to ensure that they can develop both themselves and their country to their full potential.

    In five years time oil export revenues could be as much as eight billion US dollars (depending on oil prices) per annum. This compares with government expenditure in 1999 equivalent to around three billion US dollars.

    Ending corruption and making government accountable will boost international business confidence and create greater prosperity and jobs.

    Angola’s huge resources – its natural wealth and its people – must not be squandered on War. The Government’s recent offensive against UNITA has been more successful than many expected. But I do not believe that there is a purely military solution to this war. Angola has become a war economy. Huge riches from oil and diamonds are just being wasted away as lives are lost or brutalised and the country devastated almost beyond belief. We have to make a fresh start. And Britain is ready to help.

    Ending the war is not enough. We must rule out the chance of future wars. Angolans deserve open and transparent administration. No bribes. No favours. Just good, clean government. Angolans deserve to see their economy being transformed into an open market functioning within the rule of law and delivering benefits to all.

    I welcomed the news that the Government has agreed to an IMF Staff Monitored Programme. A vital first step. You need the IMF, we need the IMF. We all live in an interconnected world. I urge the Government to publish the programme soon so that civil society can play an active part in achieving its targets. The Government has demonstrated its commitment to working for economic reform. They can be justly proud of that. Let’s make it happen through open discussion and open policy making. That is the way to win popular support from the people. That is the way to increasing investor confidence and economic advancement for all.

    In the anti-apartheid struggle I remember campaigning alongside MPLA comrades during the 1960s and 1970s. In Government the MPLA made sacrifices to support the struggle of the African National Congress for freedom in South Africa. The MPLA has an honourable history as a liberation movement. It faced almost impossible odds when it took over a country ruined first by colonialists, and later by UNITA’s foreign-backed subversion, invasion and brutal war. Despite this the MPLA government managed to implement new and bold health and education policies from which so many Angolans benefited. But somewhere along the way, something went badly wrong.

    We must build a new future. And look at what the result could be. Not a country bled dry by war and poverty and corruption. But one of the great African states. You have the oil, the diamonds. You have the agricultural potential. Luanda could be as big in the international trading market as Pretoria, Lagos or Nairobi. It is long past time that you took your place with them.

    CONCLUSION

    I speak today as a friend of Angola. And it is the duty of a true friend to speak honestly. I am determined to make a difference. I care about Angola because when I see the future of peace, I see a country, which could be the breadbasket of Southern Africa, feeding not just its own people but many millions of others. I see a country of great beauty with a people of great ability and potential. I see a country of enormous wealth that could be a powerhouse in Africa. An African Lion that could help make Africa roar with success. Instead of an Angola of war and poverty and corruption, I have a vision of an Angola in which human rights, social justice, democracy and prosperity for all flourish.

    Let us pledge ourselves to realise that vision.

    Let us all join together – you, I, your African brothers and sisters, the international community – in a rising chorus demanding peace and a new beginning.

  • Keith Vaz – 2000 Speech on the Europeanisation of South East Europe

    Keith Vaz – 2000 Speech on the Europeanisation of South East Europe

    The speech made by Keith Vaz, the then Minister for Europe, on 7 July 2000.

    Your Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen, good morning.

    This conference comes at a key moment for South East Europe. One year after the Kosovo crisis democracy is spreading throughout the region. People have exercised their right to vote in free and fair elections in Croatia, many parts of Bosnia and Herzegovina and in Montenegro. There will be elections this autumn in Kosovo, Albania and Bosnia and we hope that Serbian local elections and FRY state-level elections later this year will allow democracy to flourish there too.

    We want to see a new EU Balkan agenda to encourage this trend, one which will show the practical benefits of living up to European standards and ideals which will strengthen support amongst ordinary people in the region for what Chris Patten has described as the road to Europe. As President Clinton said during his visit to Europe in June, our goal must be to de-Balkanise the Balkans. Relations with the European Union are already growing stronger.

    EU ENLARGEMENT

    Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania and Slovenia are negotiating to join the European Union. Macedonia and Croatia are well on the way to EU Stabilisation and Association Agreements. The European Union has set a clear path for Albania and Bosnia and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia is also eligible once they meet the European Union’s conditions.

    The prospect of closer EU relations and eventually EU membership is an important incentive for change. We welcome the growing evidence of commitments to European ideals and standards and to genuine intra-regional co-operation and I look forward to the summit hosted by the French Presidency in Croatia this autumn, which will be an opportunity to reinforce that message. The Stability Pact is reinforcing this process of Europeanisation, encouraging the countries of South East Europe to work together for shared goals. It has provided 2.4 billion euros for a variety of projects starting in the next twelve months. Britain has particularly supported the pact’s investment compact of which several of you must have attended yesterday’s meeting.

    OVERCOMING LEGACIES OF THE PAST

    Nevertheless there are significant challenges ahead for the region, including for Serbia. The West can and should help, but the real work has to be done by the people of South East Europe themselves. Overcoming the legacy of nationalism, extremism and war is a huge task, but South Africa, Northern Ireland and the Middle East show how old enemies can set aside their quarrels and work together for everyone’s benefit. France and Germany were at war for much of the first half of the last century, yet a common European destiny has made them and the rest of Western Europe firm allies and friends.

    Constructive leadership is crucial. Look at the example of Croatia. The Croatian Government and people have witnessed a dramatic turnaround in their relationship with Europe since the beginning of the year. The same path, the same opportunities, are open to the people of Serbia, but not while they are held back from their rightful place in the European family by a selfish corrupt regime whose leaders refuse to be held responsible for their past actions. Milosevic has presided over the ruin of his country. The cost of Milosevic may have been as much as a hundred billion dollars, the difference between actual national income since 1991 and what that income might have been if Serbia too had embraced economic and democratic reform. Only when Milosevic has gone to The Hague can Serbia’s reconstruction begin in earnest and there should be no doubt of our willingness to help when that happens.

    TRADE AND INVESTMENT

    I hope the conference today will build links between us and the region in the areas where the European Union can really make a difference. Trade and investment, it is time for the EU to be bold, imaginative and generous. We should open its markets to South East Europe’s products and South Eastern Europe in return needs to attract investors by creating a favourable climate for investment. That is why I am so delighted to see here today so many leading members of the private sector. The private sector’s involvement of the reconstruction of the Balkans is absolutely crucial. We shall hear more from Sir David Wright on this point later. Secondly, civil society, people to people links between NGO’s, universities, towns, cities and other civic groups will help spread awareness of Europe.

    The Lisbon Economic Council highlighted the importance of the information society for the EU. We want South East Europe too to exploit the opportunities of e-commerce and the Internet in increasing economic growth, breaking down ethnic barriers and facilitating freedom of information.

    CONCLUSION

    Finally, the European Union has committed over fifteen billion euros to South East Europe over the last decade, but Europeanisation is not just about a transfer of resources, but a transfer of vision, including the people of this corner of our continent and in our common European destiny. The European Union has just such a vision for the people of Central Europe and over the last decade tremendous change has already happened there. I hope for the same for South East Europe. Following this seminar we shall be establishing a UK-Balkans Task Force to build on what we have achieved here and to monitor progress. I shall be calling on some of you to take part in that Task Force.