Minister: Summits should be inclusive

SHANGHAI, June 2 (UPI) -- In the shadow of Canada's June hosting of the G20 summit, the country's finance minister declared scant usefulness for less inclusive summits.

Visiting the Canadian Pavilion at China's Shanghai Expo, Finance Minister Jim Flaherty said, "I think the G7, G8, has some usefulness as a place to discuss certain issues," Canwest News Service reported Wednesday.

The minister alleged the G8 countries discuss and possibly resolve financial problems and solutions among themselves, contrasting those with the G20, saying: "The leaders of the G20 said it was the primary organization for economic action and that has not changed. And that is not likely to change."

Flaherty's schedule includes a stop in Beijing Thursday to talk with Chinese officials about the value of the yuan and to win over support for Canada's support for a universal bank tax.

"I think there is substantial support in the G20 for some sort of special reserve fund, Canada's idea for an embedded contingent reserve fund, to be used at a time of crisis to ensure that national institutions that contribute to a crisis bear the cost of that contribution, not taxpayers," he said.