Former British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has called on world leaders to create a new order by forming a “temporary” global government to tackle the medical and economic crises caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
According to Brown, the global government is necessary to make sure the efforts of central banks are coordinated.
The leftist former prime minister, who was in power during the near-meltdown of the banks in 2008, said there is an urgent need for a taskforce involving world leaders, health experts and the heads of international organizations that must assume “executive powers” to coordinate the response to the “emergency” on a global scale.
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“This is not something that can be dealt with in one country,” he said. “There has to be a coordinated global response.”
Brown said the coronavirus crisis is different to the 2008 financial crisis and requires a more draconian and internationalist approach.
“That was an economic problem that had economic causes and had an economic solution.
“This is first and foremost a medical emergency and there has to be joint action to deal with that. But the more you intervene to deal with the medical emergency, the more you put economies at risk.”
Guardian report:
Brown said his proposed global taskforce would fight the crisis on two fronts. There would need to be a coordinated effort to find a vaccine, and to organise production, purchasing and prevent profiteering.
Many countries have announced economic packages in the past two weeks but Brown said a taskforce could: make sure the efforts of central banks were coordinated; take steps to prevent the record flight of capital from emerging market economies; and agree a joint approach to the use of government spending to boost growth.
“We need some sort of working executive,” Brown said. “If I were doing it again, I would make the G20 a broader organisation because in the current circumstances you need to listen to the countries that are most affected, the countries that are making a difference and countries where there is the potential for a massive number of people to be affected – such as those in Africa.”
The World Bank and the International Monetary Fund needed an increase in their financial firepower to cope with the impact of the crisis on low- and middle-income countries, he said.
