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For Immediate Release

G7: Johnson to Put Britain on Path to Devastating Trade Deal With Trump

Leaders gathering at Biarritz summit are 'driving' world's problems despite claiming to solve them, campaigners say

WASHINGTON

G7 leaders will gather in the French town of Biarritz this weekend claiming to help solve major global problems like inequality, conflict and climate change, amid an unprecedented security lock down.

But campaign group Global Justice Now claims these leaders are actually at the core of the world's problems, representing countries which are driving inequality, conflict and climate change globally.

A mass mobilisation and a counter conference will take place in nearby Irun.

The summit will be the first time that Boris Johnson has met many other world leaders, and he has made clear his particular desire to cement his relationship with Donald Trump.

Campaigners warn that a US trade deal and US foreign policy interests will be on the table and will begin shaping the economic and foreign policy priorities of post-Brexit Britain.

Nick Dearden, director of Global Justice Now, said of Boris Johnson's presence:
"Boris Johnson is leading a hardline government which has no electoral mandate, yet he is making decisions which will have the most serious long-term consequences for Britain and our role in the world. Johnson is set to cement a close relationship with Donald Trump in Biarritz this weekend, pulling Britain towards this extreme and unpredictable president.

"For Britain this will be a step along the road to a US trade deal that will undermine our public services, food standards and ability to control big corporations, part of Johnson's Thatcherite plans to radically restructure the British economy. It will surely also be a step towards Britain adopting an ever more divisive and damaging foreign policy."

On the G7 summit, Dearden said:
"When world leaders claim they're coming together to create a more equal, peaceful and sustainable world, it's important to judge them on their actions rather than their rhetoric. The truth is that these leaders represent the countries most responsible for driving global inequality, arms sales and climate change. Unless they're prepared to break with corporate interests and big-business-first policies, they will continue pushing the world into the abyss.

"If they were really interested in building a fairer world, surely the G7 would not need to put the whole region of France into lockdown, with thousands of police and 'unprecedented' levels of security. The real source of hope is far more likely to come from the protestors outside the summit, who rather than colluding with fascists like Trump, include many people already starting to build a better world."

Global Justice Now is a democratic social justice organisation working as part of a global movement to challenge the powerful and create a more just and equal world. We mobilise people in the UK for change, and act in solidarity with those fighting injustice, particularly in the global south.

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