The Toronto summit was to be the moment world leaders could declare victory over the financial and economic crisis and announce the implementation of “exit strategies” from the extraordinary policies introduced to quell the crisis, it was hoped. Events, however, have conspired against the Group of 20 industrialised nations.

Instead of the G20 declaring victory, it has been forced to rip up its previous stimulus strategy in the face of renewed market turmoil and unco-ordinated fiscal tightening.

The summit now marks the moment when financial markets have forced an exit from fiscal stimulus before a vigorous private sector recovery is established. Central banks have also reintroduced some of their emergency liquidity measures to prevent the European sovereign debt crisis undermining the banking system, and the European Central Bank has resorted to unorthodox measures that were not contemplated at the height of the crisis.