G20 Summit in Brisbane Leads to Action Plan, Worries about Relevance
By: Alex LaRosa,
Staff Writer
In Brisbane, Australia, representatives of the top economies of the world met once again at the G20 summit, discussing economic growth, climate change, and even koalas. What resulted of this meeting has yet to be seen, although several reforms and suggestions have been put into legal wording. Among these include the so-called Brisbane Action Plan, a list of hundreds of suggested reforms and policies for member nations, which could cause tremendous growth if executed correctly. However, this meeting left some wondering if the G20 is still relevant at all, and for Australians, whether hosting the Brisbane summit was worth the time.
The Action Plan, according to some estimates, could lead to economic growth of 2% in the economies of member nations. All told, that would be growth of $2 trillion (“Abbot Faces Uphill Task to Make Summit Relevant”). Interestingly, some of the items on the list seem unlikely to pass in the legislative branches of the world, but were still added to the list regardless. One example of that is the “employment welfare reforms,” which would deny unemployment benefits for six months to those less than 30 years old.
There is naturally some controversy around these measures, and some are critical of Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott, because he advocated these measures even though they are unlikely to become Australian law. Abbot has also come under fire for pushing the removal of language in G20 documents that call for “inclusive growth.” According to Tim Costello, chief executive of a group called World Vision, “the language about equality and inclusive growth has been taken out and we are hearing that is at Australia’s instigation” (“Abbot Faces Uphill Task to Make Summit Relevant”).
Furthermore, another important piece of news coming out of the G20 summit deals with infrastructure. Under the new plan, an international “hub” of infrastructure development will be set up in Sydney, and it would help infrastructure projects find investors. However, some have criticized this move because the World Bank has already begun a similar project, limiting pledges of funding from other nations.
One additional controversy was that of international tax avoidance. Many companies such as Google and Apple have been in the hot seat for their practices of exploiting tax loopholes and paying as little as possible. While one might argue that it is all legal and therefore acceptable, others suggest this practice is unethical. At the G20 summit, new rules were proposed for international corporations, including one where they would have to report earnings on a country-by-country basis. This would eliminate “profit-shifting,” where a company lists the greatest portion of their income in the nations with the lowest taxes, regardless of if they made that money there. However, this measure is non-binding and would still need to be put into law in each of the member nations.
Amidst all the controversy around the Brisbane Action Plan, some still called the meeting a success. After all, the event saw thousands of people all brought into Brisbane, including the leaders of 27 nations, eight leaders of international organizations, and of course, 3,000 journalists. Through all this, there were no security issues, and the 22-day summit saw many documents released. In total, about 100 chefs prepared almost 100,000 meals for the diplomats, and not one problem was reported (“G20 Leaders Summit Sets New Standards”). There were photo opportunities all around, including one where Tony Abbott offered a live koala to Russian President Vladimir Putin, which he took and hugged, to much amusement
However, after all the pomp and ceremony, some had to ask what was really accomplished? The Action Plan, after all, was merely a set of guidelines that the member nations are to take home and attempt to turn into laws. In Australia, pundits are certain that many of the key measures will not pass, and this is the case in other nations as well. Furthermore, the summit largely ignored climate change, and merely produced one document asking member nations to consider making some pledges of reducing emissions later. As World Wildlife Federation chief executive, Dermot O’Gorman said, the plan is, “little more than a commitment to keep talking” (“G20 Energy Efficiency Action Plan”).
So with this in mind, how successful was the G20? If nothing else, it certainly was an event of epic proportions that got world leaders talking. Perhaps some of the measures taken here will become laws and lead to the promised growth. On the other hand, it also seems as though Prime Minister Abbott merely steamrolled his way through the documents and presented a plan that others should follow, even if his country will not. So as it stands right now, the summit has led to very little besides talking points. Perhaps it will become clear later on what exactly this summit means for the world’s largest economies, if anything at all.
Works Cited
Koumelis, Theodore. The G20 Leaders Summit sets new standards for major events. 20 November 2014. 21 November 2014 <http://www.traveldailynews.asia/news/article/57270/the-g20-leaders-summit-sets>.
Taylor, Lenore. G20 Brisbane: Abbott faces uphill task to make summit relevant or effective. 11 November 2014. 21 November 2014 <http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/nov/12/g20-brisbane-abbott-faces-uphill-task-summit-relevant-effective>.
—. G20 energy efficiency action plan appears to require little or no action. 3 November 2014. 21 November 2014 <http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/nov/04/g20-energy-efficency-action-plan-offers-little-no-action>.
Top photo from http://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2014/nov/16/g20-brisbane-day-two-kicks-off-with-climate-change-in-spotlight-live