01/06/2010

"Introduction: the FSB and the G20 process

Speculative attacks on major currencies, in particular the Euro, demonstrate that the shadow financial economy is back to ‘business as usual’. The FSB was established by the G20 last year to prevent such irresponsible destruction of real economic activity - yet despite claims to the contrary FSB progress on re-regulating global finance has been slow, amounting only to a series of reports and principles for future reform, but no concrete regulatory action. If anything, the FSB’s reports reveal the extent to which governments and supervisory authorities have lost control over global finance. The recent FSB/IMF proposals to reform the Basel II Framework for banks and to introduce new taxation on large financial institutions represent too little too late and fall far short of the bold and ambitious action that is needed to deliver the necessary change and quell the rising tide of public anger.

In this statement the trade union movement proposes concrete measures to bring the FSB in line with its G20 mandate. Meeting in Plenary session in Toronto ahead of the G20 Summit, the FSB must:

• Deepen internal governance reforms to promote transparency and to m formalise consultations with trade unions and other representative civil society organisations;
• Broaden its membership to incorporate key international fora on the m issues of retirement security, social finance and international tax cooperation;
• Accelerate and level up the ambition of its work programme to develop m effective regulation of the shadow financial economy;
• Prepare for global implementation of a financial transactions tax. "

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