Brown, Merkel urge tighter global banking supervision

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown called for more rigorous supervision of the global banking system on Saturday, a day before EU leaders meet to thrash out ways to tackle the financial crisis.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel urged European Union states to work together to deal with the downturn, telling the Hamburger Abendblatt newspaper: "We are working intensively on new rules for the international financial markets."

Brown, speaking at his ruling Labour Party's National Policy Forum, called for the global mandate of international institutions to be beefed up to deliver growth and jobs.

"I want us to do what was advocated by our country years ago. To have global supervision of what is a shadow global system. I want there to be no hiding place for special investment vehicles, for hedge funds or tax havens," he said.

"Because this is a worldwide problem of banking failures we are now looking with our other colleagues internationally at how across all parts of the world we can bring under supervision what is an international shadow banking system." Brown had tough words for the bankers whose dodgy lending practices and bonus culture brought the international financial system to the brink of collapse.

"Some practices are indefensible and they have got to be cleaned up now. It's time to set new rules for the banks of all countries," he said.

Brown said the government was exploring legal avenues to recover some of the payouts given to bank executives who quit their jobs when their institutions were bailed out with state funds last year.

In Germany, Europe's biggest economy which is facing its worst recession since World War Two, Merkel has long called for tighter supervision of financial markets.

'"I want us to do what was advocated by our country years ago. To have global supervision of what is a shadow global system. I want there to be no hiding place for special investment vehicles, for hedge funds or tax havens," he said.'

The NWO don't play around.

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.