That’s all for tonight, from a rather cold and snowy Davos. See you in the morning for full coverage of Day 1. GW
Pope Francis urges Davos to fight poverty and injustice; Elton John blasts 'disgraceful' inequality -- as it happened
Mon 22 Jan 2018 17.12 EST
First published on Mon 22 Jan 2018 02.42 EST- Sir Elton John blasts 'disgraceful' inequality
- Pope blasts 'ambition for profit at all costs'
- Davos opening ceremony begins
- UK bosses more upbeat, but job cuts may loom
- Davos in photos
- UK lags behind on new 'inclusive' economic index
- Labour blames Tories as IMF cuts UK growth for 2019
- Wall Street opens lower
- Regulators need to watch cryptocurrencies carefully - IMF
- Next recession may be closer than we think - IMF
- IMF's Lagarde warns on complaceny
- Global economy to grow faster than expected after US tax breaks - IMF
- Millions of workers need to learn new skills or lose their jobs - WEF
- Carillion collapse: projects continuing satisfactorily, says Moody's
- Bookies shares hit by FOBT report
- European markets open mixed
- Agenda: Davos dominates
Live feed
- Sir Elton John blasts 'disgraceful' inequality
- Pope blasts 'ambition for profit at all costs'
- Davos opening ceremony begins
- UK bosses more upbeat, but job cuts may loom
- Davos in photos
- UK lags behind on new 'inclusive' economic index
- Labour blames Tories as IMF cuts UK growth for 2019
- Wall Street opens lower
- Regulators need to watch cryptocurrencies carefully - IMF
- Next recession may be closer than we think - IMF
- IMF's Lagarde warns on complaceny
- Global economy to grow faster than expected after US tax breaks - IMF
- Millions of workers need to learn new skills or lose their jobs - WEF
- Carillion collapse: projects continuing satisfactorily, says Moody's
- Bookies shares hit by FOBT report
- European markets open mixed
- Agenda: Davos dominates
Here’s the key message from Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan’s speech to WEF tonight, as he collected his Crystal Award.
“To disfigure a woman by throwing acid on her face is one of the crudest acts of subjugation imaginable. At the source of it lies the view that a woman does not have the right to assert her choice,.
We need to open access for each and every one with a true sense of ourselves, not as more powerful or less privileged but as equals.”
Rukh Khan’s non-profit Meer Foundation provides support to female victims of acid attacks and major burn injuries through medical treatment and legal aid.
The dancing is over, and I’ve hotfooted it across from the Congress Centre to hear from Global Himalayan Expedition, an Indian social enterprise.
GHE have a good story to tell too - they’ve using solar panels and ‘decentralized microgrids’ to bring power to remote communities in India.
We’re watching a video now, about how a village who relied on kerosene lamps now have modern LED lighting.
GHE’s Jaideep Bansal, who is one of WEF’s ‘global shapers’, explains that the children in the village used to trek three miles to school. Now they have an internet connection -- no sooner were they online then they were checking out their own region on Wikipedia. Inspiring stuff. More details here.
Elton John’s attack on inequality will, rightly, provoke reminders that he is himself fabulously wealthy - with an estimated £290m in the bank.
But that’s what happens when you shift a quarter of a billion records over a glittering career. And in his defence, the Elton John AIDS Foundation (EJAF) has raised more than $400 million (according to WEF).
From inequality to...ballet!
WEF delegates are now enjoying a performance led by La Scala’s principal dancer étoile Roberto Bolle, which I’m told “fuses the work of Antonio Vivaldi and Astor Piazzolla to explore the fine line between chaos and harmony in our relationship with nature.”
Sir Elton John blasts 'disgraceful' inequality
Finally, Sir Elton John receives his Crystal Award from the World Economic Foundation, for his philanthropic work.
Sir Elton explains that he became a philanthropist because he had “lost who he had become”, adding:
“I wanted to reconnect, i wanted to be a decent person”.
Sir Elton talks about the battle against HIV/AIDS - it was a death sentence 25 years ago, he says, but there are now millions of people on life-saving medicine.
The musician ends by challenging delegates at Davos to deliver on their mission to improve the state of the world, adding;
The world needs to be changed - the inequality in the world is, to be honest, disgraceful.
Now, Bollywood star Shar Rukr Khan gives a moving speech about the strength of women, such as those who have suffered acid attacks, and children who are overcoming suffering.
Collecting her WEF crystal award, Cate Blanchett tells the audience that we must rebuild the ‘shared bonds’ between people if we are to tackle the refugee crisis.
The Australian actor laments the lack of empathy and compassion. She explains that if we can drop the ‘loaded label’ of the word ‘refugee’ it is earlier to see the person behind it.
It is “very very easy” to turn your back on those in need, if you don’t think of them as fellow human being, Blanchett says, adding:
Once you’ve born witness you cannot turn away.
Pope blasts 'ambition for profit at all costs'
Pope Francis has sent a message to the World Economic Forum, and it’s a stern warning that capitalism is failing to serve the people.
The message is being read by Cardinal Peter Kodwo Appiah Turkson.
In it, the Pope says there is a “moral imperative” to create the conditions needed to allow everyone to live in a dignified manner
He’s urges delegates at WEF to build a better foundation for a just society, that can restore dignity to “those who cannot dream of a better world”.
Pope Francis warns of “growing fragmentation between states and institutions”, with new actors emerging, and new economic competition and regional trade agreements.
In a damning verdict on the world today, the Pope warns that “an ambition for profit at all costs” is driving future fragmentation and individualism, rather than inclusiveness.
He says:
The recurring financial instabilities have brought new problems and serious challenges that governments must confront, such as the growth of unemployment, the increase in various forms of poverty, the widening of the socio-economic gap and new forms of slavery, often rooted in situations of conflict, migration and various social problems.
Ordinary people risk being treated as mere cogs in a machine to be exploited, the Pope continues, adding:
Whenever a human life no longer proves useful for that machine, it is discarded with few qualms.
He also warns that artificial intelligence and robots must be used for the service of humanity, rather than to undermine it.
Economic freedom must not prevail over the freedom of men and women, and their rights, the Pope says, declaring:
We cannot remain silent in the face of the suffering of millions of people whose dignity is wounded, nor can we continue to move forward as if the spread of poverty and injustice has no cause.
He concludes by wishing WEF his best wishes for a successful meeting, and invokes ‘the divine blessings of wisdom and strength” on those attending.
Given the state of the world, I think they may need it..
Klaus Schwab welcomes delegates to the 48th World Economic Forum.
He calls WEF the “foremost multi-stakeholder group in the world”.
This year’s delegates include politicians, business leaders, the heads of international organisations, charities and trade unions, plus the new generation of young global leaders.
The point behind WEF is is that governments, businesses and civil society cannot solve the world’s problems alone.
He reminds us that WEF’s ambition is to “Improve the state of the world”, and urges delegates to follow three rules:
- respect human dignity and diversity
- serve the community
- be a trustee of the next generation
Davos opening ceremony begins
Delegates are flooding into the main Congress Hall at the World Economic Forum, as founder Klaus Schwab prepares to open this year’s event.
Despite the disruption caused by today’s snow, the cavernous space is pretty packed.
That may be thanks to the lure of celebrity. Schwab is going to hand over three crystal awards:
- Cate Blanchett, for her leadership in raising awareness of the refugee crisis
- Sir Elton John, for his leadership in the fight against HIV/AIDS
- Shah Rukh Khan, for his leadership in championing children’s and women’s rights in India
UK bosses more upbeat, but job cuts may loom
Just in: Nine out of ten business leaders in Britain are upbeat about the growth prospects for their companies this year despite uncertainty about the impact of Brexit.
That’s according to consultancy firm PwC, which has just released its annual survey of chief executives at a press event in Davos.
PwC found that optimism about the health of the global economy was boosting confidence; 36% of business leaders expected the global economy to strengthen in 2018, up from 17% in 2017.
But, the number of UK business leaders who describe themselves as ‘very confident’ has dipped to 34% from 41% last year.
PwC also uncovered signs that British businesses are reining in their hiring plans.
The number of UK business leaders expecting to increase headcount has fallen slightly to 54% from 63% last year, while 15% expect to reduce headcount, compared to 10% in 2017
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