EU leaders agree stance on economy

(londonsummit.gov.uk)
Updated: 2009-03-23 16:59

EU nations have agreed to develop principles to regulate the banking sector and to make $100 billion in loans available to the International Monetary Fund to support the developing world.

European leaders gathered at the Spring European Council Summit in Brussels to discuss their stance on solving the global economic crisis ahead of next month’s G20 Summit in London.

(L-R) France's President Nicolas Sarkozy, Britain's Prime Minister Gordon Brown and Finland's Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen talk on the last day of a two-day EU leaders summit in Brussels March 20, 2009. [Agencies]

Speaking after the summit, Gordon Brown said the EU has also agreed a €5 billion (￡4.7 billion) package of funding for renewable energy and broadband projects to make Europe’s economic recovery 'green and high tech'.

Leaders have also pledged to double the balance of payments assistance that may be made available to struggling central and Eastern European countries to EURO50 billion (￡47billion).

Mr Brown said: 'This is an issue for every country in the world. It is vital, therefore, that we increase resources available to the international institutions to stop the crisis spreading.'

He emphasized that the $100 billion loan will not be given to the IMF immediately, but countries have agreed they will supply the funds if necessary. He said the UK will now consider how much its contribution would be.

Mr Brown said the EU has taken an anti-protectionist stance that it will carry into the G20 negotiations - a theme that had been central to the Prime Minister’s discussions this week.

He said: 'We reject protectionism. We are an anti-protectionist European Union. We must remain vigilant at all times to any form of protectionism - covert or overt.'

Mr Brown said that the agreements had 'laid the foundations' for the G20 summit. Next week, he will travel to New York, Brazil and Chile to continue discussions on the economy in the hope of building more international consensus ahead of the G20.

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