• Our task ahead is clear; we face a global financial crisis on a scale that is, as President Obama has said, unprecedented. No one country can resolve this crisis alone. International co-operation is essential.
• The London Summit provides a vital opportunity, bringing together leaders of the world’s major economies and key international institutions to take the collective action necessary to stabilise the world economy and secure recovery and jobs.
• Our goal for the London Summit is for Leaders to agree to immediate action to support the global economy, safeguard jobs and protect the poorest, plus reform to the international financial system to prevent future crises. This will amount to a Global New Deal that will secure recovery and long term stability and growth.
• Specifically, we hope to agree:
  - action to stimulate the world economy
  - additional resources for the IMF, support for trade finance, and action to protect the poorest
  - measures to stabilise the financial sector and encourage credit to flow to people and businesses, alongside tougher regulation of the financial sector to prevent crises in the future
  - strengthened commitments to maintain open markets and refrain from protectionism
  - reforms to the international financial institutions to ensure they have the tools and governance structures to meet the needs of the modern global economy
  - commitments to support a green recovery
• G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors met on 14 March and made progress on a number of these issues: agreeing “to take whatever action is necessary until growth is restored”; a framework for dealing with impaired assets;  a “very substantial” increase in IMF resources; recommending action to strengthen financial regulation; and making progress on IFI reform.
• The 2 April Summit must build on these achievements, taking the action necessary to restore stability, growth and jobs.

OUR GOALS FOR THE SUMMIT:

Stimulating the world economy

• We need to take immediate action to restore confidence, stabilise financial markets and stimulate economic growth and job creation. Governments and central banks in many countries, including the UK, have already deployed both fiscal and monetary policy tools to support demand.
• But, at a global level, this has not yet been sufficient. G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors agreed on 14 March “to take whatever action is necessary until growth is restored”, consistent with long term fiscal sustainability and price stability.

Supporting emerging markets, protecting the poorest

• G20 Finance Ministers agreed on “the urgent need to increase IMF resources very substantially” to support those vulnerable countries. The IMF Board has already agreed in principle to double IMF resources to $500bn. The fastest way to raise these funds is through bilateral loans. Japan has already provided $100bn. We hope that other countries will come forward with the remaining $150bn. However, $500bn may not be sufficient. We believe that additional sums should be raised through other mechanisms such as an expanded NAB (New Arrangement to Borrow) and/or issue of SDRs (Special Drawing Rights).
• The reduced availability of trade finance has accelerated the decline in trade flows. We hope that Leaders will agree action to support, in particular providing funds for the IFC’s Global Trade Liquidity Programme.  
• The poorest and most vulnerable must not be forgotten. The World Bank and other multilateral development banks (MDBs) must also increase and accelerate their lending, to support investment and social spending in developing countries. The MDBs should make best use of existing resources and increasing these where necessary (as the Asian Development Bank has already agreed to do).
• The economic crisis poses real risks to recent development achievements. Leaders must reaffirm their commitment to meeting the Millennium Development Goals and maintaining ODA commitments despite the economic crisis.
• In addition, funds are needed to directly mitigate the impact of the global recession on households in the poorest countries. The World Bank have proposed a $5bn Vulnerability Financing Facility for this purpose, which the UK will support with a donation of at least $250m.

Strengthening the financial sector

• In addition to actions to restore growth and stability to the world economy, we must also implement the reforms necessary to strengthen financial regulation, so helping to avoid future crises. At the London Summit, Leaders must build on the recommendations of the G20 Finance Ministers to:
    - extend the regulatory net to ensure appropriate oversight or regulation of all systemically important financial institutions, including hedge funds, with financial activities regulated on the basis of their economic substance and not their legal form; 
    - agree to implement remuneration guidelines that do not reward excessive risk-taking;
    - take action to crackdown on tax havens and non-cooperative jurisdictions;
    - agree to greater oversight of credit rating agencies;
    - and agree on strengthened capital requirements that counter the natural tendency of financial cycles to amplify economic cycles.  
  And we expect Leaders to endorse the expansion of the Financial Stability Forum to include key emerging markets and a strengthening of its mandate to allow it: develop, promote and monitor the adoption of best practice in regulatory standards; strengthen the framework for cross-border co-operation including supervisory colleges; and, with the IMF, provide an early warning system to identify and report emerging macroeconomic and financial sector risks.

Preventing a retreat into protectionism

• Vital that countries do not resort to protectionism. The 1930s showed the dangers of putting up barriers to trade. The recession will be deeper and the recovery slower if trade is restricted.
• We are pushing for a renewed and strengthened commitment to refrain from protectionist measures, with a monitoring mechanism to hold countries to account for this pledge.
• We also hope Leaders will renew their commitment to a successful conclusion of the Doha Round.

Reforming International Institutions

• We must ensure that the IMF has a governance structure and a role that reflects the global economy of the 21st century. G20 Finance Ministers agreed to bring forward the next review of IMF quotas. We also hope to agree a timetable for the reform of World Bank governance, including participation and voice of developing countries. And G20 Finance Ministers agreed to adopt open and meritocratic processes for appointing the Heads of the IMF and World Bank.
• Finance Ministers also agreed that an expanded and strengthened Financial Stability Forum (FSF) should work with the IMF to provide an early warning system to report on financial sector risks to the global economy.

Greening the recovery

• We hope that Leaders will agree that their stimulus and recovery programmes should be consistent with moves to a low carbon economy.
• The Summit should also reaffirm commitments to tackle climate change through a successful and ambitious agreement in Copenhagen.