The first in-person meeting of the G7 countries since the start of the pandemic is being held in London today.
Finance Minister Pascal Donohue will attend the two-day meeting in his capacity as President of the Eurogroup – the collective term for informal meetings of Eurozone finance ministers.
He said ministers are set to «examine coordinated approaches to the major economic challenges facing economies emerging from the Covid crisis,» as well as «key global challenges, including climate and nature, health financing, and support for low-income countries.»
Speaking ahead of the meeting, Mr. Donohue said: «There is now a clear light at the end of the tunnel as vaccination rolls out, infections subside and pressure on intensive care services gradually decreases.
«This year the eurozone economy will rebound strongly. Our economic policies have been instrumental in facilitating this recovery and protecting our citizens over the past year, preserving jobs and putting our economies in a position to recover strongly.»
British Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak said he aims to secure a «fair deal» on digital taxes as he welcomes foreign ministers to London.
Ministers from the United States, Japan, France, Canada, Germany and Italy will attend the two-day meeting at Lancaster House in London, ahead of a leaders’ summit in Cornwall next weekend.
They will discuss measures to tackle climate change as well as efforts to secure international agreement on how to tax digital businesses.
Speaking before the meeting, Mr. Sunak said: “The G7 is a very important group and I am honored to welcome my counterparts to London with a renewed spirit of multilateral cooperation.
“Even before we took over the G7 presidency, we were clear about our priorities – protecting jobs, ensuring a green and global recovery, and supporting the world’s most vulnerable countries.
“Securing a global agreement on digital tax has also been a key priority this year – we want businesses to pay the right amount of tax in the right place, and I hope we can strike a fair deal with our partners.
“I am determined that we work together and unite to address the world’s most pressing economic challenges – and I am very optimistic that we will achieve some tangible results this weekend.
«Together we can make real change and help guide the international community through the next phase of our recovery.»