G20 Summit

Simon Hughes Excerpts

Monday 15th November 2010 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

What I did, which was the right thing to do, was to have a very frank exchange about human rights with the Chinese in the meetings that we had, and I can tell the right hon. Gentleman that nothing and no one was off the agenda.

[Simon Hughes (Bermondsey and Old Southwark) (LD)]

May I associate myself and colleagues with the warm words about Aung San Suu Kyi and congratulate the Prime Minister on his mission to China?

I have read the communiqué, which contains an undertaking to ensure that we have a

“resilient financial system by reining in the past excesses of the financial sector and better serving the needs of our economies.”

What does that mean in practice for ending in the G20 excessive bank profits and bonuses and excessive use of tax havens?

[The Prime Minister]

There is very strong agreement that we need to deal with the issue of tax havens. My right hon. Friend the Chancellor made an announcement about that while he was in Seoul. We can see real progress in the G20 on the nuts and bolts of regulation, particularly of levels of capital through the Basel accords, but also progress covering the issues that the hon. Gentleman mentions. National steps should also be taken, and I know that he very much supports the bank levy that we have put in place, which is raising serious money. In a way, it is saying to the banks that it is right that they should now be making a contribution as we deal with our fiscal deficit.