G20 finance chiefs agree to focus on wealth gap

First time that concerns about inequality have been expressed by finance czars

OTTAWA— Finance Minister Joe Oliver, who will be delivering a federal budget in a few months, has agreed with finance chiefs of the world’s largest economies that they should adopt policies to address the growing wealth gap.

“In some countries, potential growth has declined, demand continues to be weak, the outlook for jobs is still bleak and income inequality is rising,” read a statement from Group of 20 (G20) finance ministers and central bankers released Tuesday after meetings in Istanbul, Turkey.

Later in their communiqué, the finance ministers laid out their joint commitments for pursuing stronger global economic growth.

“We will also strive to ensure that growth is inclusive, including through policies that address income inequality,” the G20 finance ministers said.

It is believed to be the first time that finance chiefs from the G20 have expressed concerns about income inequality.

But the communiqué appeared to reflect growing worries internationally about the accumulation of wealth among society’s top income earners to the detriment of the middle-class and low-income earners.

The Paris-based Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development estimates the gap between rich and poor is at its highest level in most of its countries in three decades. The richest 10 per cent of the population in its membership earn 9.5 times more than the poorest 10 per cent, up from seven times in the 1980s.

Anti-poverty charity Oxfam said last month that the richest 1 per cent are about to control a majority of the world’s wealth by 2016.

In Canada, the NDP and Liberals have both raised the issue of income inequality and pressed the government to address what opposition MPs say are dwindling financial prospects among all but the rich.

“The press release is easy to do, the work means they would have to change their actions,” NDP finance critic Nathan Cullen said in response to the G20 communiqué.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper has said middle-income and low-income Canadians have benefitted most from tax cuts brought in by his government. The Conservatives have also said their prime goal is to help Canada by keeping the economy growing steadily. With files from Bloomberg