Skip to main content

Campaigners, NGO’s and the governments of nations most at risk have once again been disappointed by the outcomes (or lack thereof) from this week’s round of G20 meetings.

The continual failure of governments to make a strong and binding commitment is rather astounding given that CSIRO’s latest scientific reports are showing that we are on track for worst case scenarios predicted by the International Panel On Climate Change Report 2007.

Climate Change policy making at the international level is revealing the way in which governments are increasingly behaving like businesses, with profiteering and self interest driving their individual decision making.

So why is it that governments are now engaged in this self interested way? The answer – money !
Governments of developed countries have over the last thirty years privatized the national assets, which has created a phenomenal shift in the global economic situation. While once the bulk of the world’s wealth was controlled by governments it is now the case that the bulk of the world’s wealth is controlled by corporations – currently of the world’s largest 150 economies, 95 corporations and 55 are countries.

Those governments who have sold their national infrastructure for one giant splash of cash have left themselves no other revenue available to use than what can be raised in taxes. While individual taxes make governments money, the vast majority of the income of a country is derived from corporate taxes and foreign investment.

As a result we are seeing that countries want to act, both on climate change mitigation and on ways in which they could raise climate change adaptation funding – but fear of driving the powerful corporate dollar overseas to another country (customer) not implementing the same level of taxes and regulation prevents them from doing so.

The way in which national governments are behaving is largely representative of business offering lowest possible rates to win tenders and contracts and is resulting in destructive competition on a global scale. Destructive competition has always been regarded of a failure of the market, but now as we see governments behaving like business we are seeing this failure impacting on the public sector to the detriment of the whole of humanity.

The G20‘s failure to reach agreement on the Robin Hood style tax on financial transactions is a major blow to sourcing the money desperately needed to help those communities working to overcome climate change impacts.

The Robin Hood tax is a tiny tax aimed at speculative trading, derivatives and bonds (not everyday banking transactions) and would raise billions of dollars for climate change adaptation and poverty reduction around the globe.

The failure of the international community to reach agreement is disappointing but it is not the end of the road – you can let the Australian government know that you want them to support this tax at the next round of G20 meetings by taking action.

Read more blogs

Shaima Ali, a refugee and mother of four who is among Oxfam cash assistant program participant sitted outside her home feeding her daughter Fahima in Renk, South Sudan

The Cholera Outbreak in South Sudan

South Sudan is currently experiencing its largest-ever cholera outbreak, with confirmed cases reported across multiple states. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), from September 28, 2024, to April 11,...

Read more
South Sudan: Asia Ahmed* with her mother, Suat, at their home in Renk, South Sudan. They are among nearly a million people displaced by the ongoing conflict in Sudan. Photo: Herison Philip Osfaldo/Oxfam

The Sudan Civil War: An Overview

Nearly 13 million people have fled their homes during the recent conflict in Sudan. That’s nearly one third of Sudan’s population. A large proportion are seeking refuge in neighbouring South...

Read more

Carbon Inequality Kills report

Why curbing the excessive emissions of an elite few can create a sustainable planet for all The climate crisis is deeply connected to inequality. The world's richest are disproportionately responsible...

Read more