G7 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors support Trustees' sustainability initiative
05 Jun, 2021
The Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors of the G7 met virtually on 28 May 2021, and Finance Ministers met in London on 4-5 June 2021, joined by the Heads of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), World Bank Group, Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), Eurogroup, and Financial Stability Board (FSB). In their final communiqué they support the IFRS Foundation Trustees' initiative on sustainability reporting.
In the final communiqué, the Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors emphasise the need to green the global financial system so that financial decisions take climate considerations into account as this would help mobilise the trillions of dollars of private sector finance needed, and reinforce government policy to meet their net zero commitments. The communiqué notes:
We support moving towards mandatory climate-related financial disclosures that provide consistent and decision-useful information for market participants and that are based on the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) framework, in line with domestic regulatory frameworks. Investors need high quality, comparable and reliable information on climate risks. We therefore agree on the need for a baseline global reporting standard for sustainability, which jurisdictions can further supplement. We welcome the International Financial Reporting Standards Foundation’s programme of work to develop this baseline standard under robust governance and public oversight, built from the TCFD framework and the work of sustainability standard-setters, involving them and a wider range of stakeholders closely to foster global best practice and accelerate convergence. We encourage further consultation on a final proposal leading to the establishment of an International Sustainability Standards Board ahead of COP26.
Please click for the full communiqué on the UK government website. In a press release on the IASB website, the Trustees appreciate the support in the G7 communiqué.