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PM claims crisis blueprint victory
6:43pm Sunday 12th October 2008
Gordon Brown has claimed victory in his battle to persuade European leaders that a British-style bank bail-out can stem global financial turmoil.
The Prime Minister emerged from a crunch summit in Paris convinced that the EU will follow his blueprint for easing the crisis.
"I am confident after talking to my European colleagues that more liquidity, funding for the medium term loans necessary for businesses and mortgages and the recapitalisation of banks are part of their thinking as well," he told journalists.
He continued: "The difficulty that we have got at the moment is in restoring confidence in the banking system. What is missing is confidence itself. I believe that the action we have taken in Britain will restore that, and we will see over the next few days worldwide action that will also see confidence restored."
Mr Brown and Chancellor Alistair Darling unveiled their £500 billion package designed to stabilise the ailing banking system last week. It will see the Government buy up to £50 billion worth of shares in banks and give massive guarantees to interbank lending.
The US followed suit with similar plans on Saturday after talks between the G7 nations in Washington.
A meeting between the Prime Minister and his French, German and Italian counterparts last weekend failed to agree on a joint course of action. But another disastrous week on global stock markets appears to have focused minds.
A draft declaration from the 15 eurozone countries sets out their intention to guarantee "for an interim period and on appropriate commercial terms" new debts caused by bank lending. The statement said the scheme would be "limited in amount", and individual nations will decide the level of their support.
Mr Brown's attendance at a meeting of single currency members was unprecedented, and offered a golden opportunity to push his vision of co-ordinated global action.
However, speaking after briefing fellow leaders, he played down his role in driving through the plan. "No one country can solve a global problem on its own," he said. "We are working together in Europe and across the Atlantic and around the world."
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