What exactly did Gordon Brown's "must be seen to be doing something" trip to Jeddah in Suadi Arabia actually achieve, apart from waste money and energy in delivering a 10 minute speech, to a conference, without any other world leaders present (apart from the Saudi Arabian hosts) ?
The lobby journalists were not impressed e.g. Sam Coates at The Times
Over the next 18 hours we will be spending 13 hours travelling so he can make a 10 minute speech - the bulk of which was released to the Sunday newspapers - which will allow Gordo to tell people he is 'doing something' about oil prices. We haven't even arrived and the Algerians have already issued the draft communique. Gordo's press briefing will apparently be before the conference has even started. And they've just shaved fours hours off the trip
What has this trip achieved ? Less than nothing - the price of crude oil went up afterwards !
According to The Guardian:
Demand, not speculation, at heart of oil shock, says Brown
[...]
In his speech, Brown offered a long-term deal whereby the oil-consuming nations would diversify energy supplies, moving into nuclear and renewables, and the oil-producing countries would increase production, as well as recycle some of their huge profits into western renewable technologies.
Is Gordon Brown really willing to let, say, the Iranian , or even the Saudi Arabian governments invest in, and therefore have access to British nuclear technology ?
Why not just give them nuclear weapons, with which they can threaten us, on credit ?
If the UK Government and the City of London cannot see the business case for investing in, say, nuclear power or wind turbines etc, then why do they think that the Saudi Arabians or others in OPEC would waste their money on such projects either ?
Who is going to be stupid enough to commit billions of pounds to risky projects which have not actually been specified in detail ? That may be how the NuLabour Government operates, but other countries are a lot more prudent with their money.
It all sounds like Gordon Brown's vague handwaving about clearing Third World Debt, which he used to get positive media coverage for himself - has all the promised money actually materialised ?
Brown has stated that oil producers have earned $3tn in extra profits from the latest oil shock. He also revealed Britain will host a follow-up summit in London, to build the shared analysis of what he described as the biggest problem of the world. The meeting will probably be held in October.
Nobody else agrees with Brown's analysis:
[...]
But Brown's analysis of the causes of record oil costs was at odds with the Opec president, Chakib Khelil, who reiterated his view opposing increased production, saying "the price is disconnected from fundamentals" of supply and demand.
"We believe that the market is in equilibrium. The price is disconnected from fundamentals. It is not a problem of supply."
The Indian finance minister, Palaniappan Chidambaram, agreed, saying producers and consumers should "wrest control" of trading by agreeing to restrict prices.
"Surely demand and supply cannot explain what has happened over the last 12 months," he said. "Oil prices were $70 a barrel in August 2007 and how is it that they've doubled when there has been no dramatic change in demand?"
What exactly has Gordon Brown achieved with this junket to Jeddah, apart from embarrassing the United Kingdom in front of assorted foreign finance and oil ministers ?
When will Gordon Brown reduce the tax on fuel in the UK ?