WORLD> Europe
British PM urges to build a new truly global society
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2008-11-11 09:54

LONDON -- British Prime Minister Gordon Brown called for shaping a truly global society and better international coordination of fiscal and momentary policies in a speech at the Lord Mayor's banquet here on Monday.

He said that G8, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank must change to meet new realities and Britain and the United States must provide leadership in efforts to build stronger international order. And the British government is to work with G20 partners to build new Breton Woods with reformed IMF.

"Together we can seize this moment of change to create age of a truly global society," he said. "Today's challenges are birth- pangs of new global order."

Brown added that the world has forged a common approach to deal with the financial crisis. This was the first financial crisis of new global age and was also an unprecedented period of global change. "Now is time when one chapter ended and another began for the whole world," he said.

Though the challenges facing the world appeared "daunting," and prosperity and security of world is at stake, it is in the midst of economic transition to new global age and the world economy is likely to double in next two decades, according to the prime minister.

He said maintaining essential public investment is right thing to do and this is an international consensus. "We will maintain essential public investments while increasing value for money."

"Confidence in future is the most precious asset of all," he said. "2008 must be remembered as a time for optimism and decisiveness not just financial crisis." He was confident that "we can seize the moment to build the first truly global society."