G8 backs summit to reform world financial system

France, Britain and Germany have won backing from the G8 group of industrialised nations for a world summit to reform the global financial system.

The plan was put forward at an emergency European Union summit to discuss the financial crisis.

President Nicolas Sarkozy, whose country currently holds the EU presidency, suggested the reform summit be held in New York, where he says everything began.

He said: “What we don’t want is that tomorrow the same causes create the same effects. We are unanimous when we say that this complete overhaul must be global. This means that no financial institution can escape regulation and monitoring: transparency for all financial players, without exception; a pay system that needs to be shaken up, to avoid blind risk-taking; and holding managers and administrators accountable for their decisions.”

Meanwhile, there are now question marks over previous promises to tackle climate change.

Sarkozy says he wants to push ahead for a deal on cutting CO2 emissions and boosting renewable energy sources by the end of the year.

But Italy and Poland are among those calling for caution during the financial crisis.

The Polish European Affairs Minister, Nikolaj Dowgielewizc, said: ‘‘We are concerned our energy mix, 94 percent based on coal for energy production, doesn’t allow Poland and some other countries to decarbonise the economy as some people would hope is possible in the coming years. So we need to find flexible solutions. We need to have time for that, for that to work.’‘

EU leaders say they are determined to work together to fight the growing threat of a global recession. It is a risk that experts say is forever present, despite the unprecedented government rescues of large banks.

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