Policy Alert #240 | November 3, 2021
The Group of Twenty (G20) convened on October 30-31, 2021 for the Rome Summit, ahead of the UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) on October 31 – November 12, 2021. Leaders of the world’s 20 biggest economies – with the exception of China, Russia, Japan and Mexico – met for the first time in-person since the start of the pandemic. On the first day, health and the economy were top of the agenda, with the subsequent Rome Declaration notably establishing a global minimum tax rate, which will see the profits of large businesses taxed at least 15%. The more difficult climate discussions were saved for the second day but hopes the Rome Summit might pave the way to success in Glasgow have dimmed considerably. The G20 appeared to make few commitments to strong measures necessary to avert the threat of climate change. UN Secretary-General António Guterres summarized his thoughts on the G20 in a tweet: “While I welcome the #G20’s recommitment to global solutions, I leave Rome with my hopes unfulfilled — but at least they are not buried… onwards to #COP26 in Glasgow.”
