July 9, 2008

G8 Recap

Following on from yesterday's post here's a recap of Canada's performance at the G8 from Make Poverty History:

We lagged behind other nations at this G8 summit, and the world took notice. While other countries like Britain, Japan and the USA offered significant new funding for climate change adaptation and the development of clean energy in developing countries, Canada has so far refused to contribute.

Canada was opposed to restating a commitment made last year at the G8 for the members to spend $60 billion on health programs for poor countries. The Canadian government wanted to take this promise out of this year’s final commitments, arguing it was too vague. In the end, Canada had to compromise under pressure from the other G8 countries. It worries me to think what might have happened if the Canadian government had got its way.

Canada, along with the US, also opposed mid-term targets for greenhouse gas reductions, so the G8 communique only talks about a 50% reduction target by 2050, a time when all the current G8 leaders will be long gone.

Disappointed? Click here to send a message to Prime Minister Harper and Minister Bev Oda urging them to do better the “next time they have the opportunity to demonstrate Canada’s leadership on the world stage.” An upcoming meeting on global poverty will be held at the UN in September, an excellent time to change their tune.

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