More and more of them explicitly acknowledge that their success or failure will be judged not only by the dividend they pay to their shareholders, but by the way they affect all life on this planet. These principles express, in codified form, the aspirations of all peoples. Implementing them fully would disarm much of the hostility to open markets, by helping ensure that the benefits of economic interdependence are spread more widely. All this is progress in the right direction. But I should be deceiving you, ladies and gentlemen, if I gave the impression that the United Nations has already found the magic formula for implementing the principles of good governance at the global level.
Good governance is about participation, about letting the people's voice be heard.
All I can say at this stage is that we are trying, at every level of the system. Many of you may think that the ultimate test of global governance will be reform of the United Nations Security Council. Certainly, it is widely agreed that the Council's present membership reflects the political and economic realities of 1945, and that this anachronism is beginning to affect its authority and legitimacy in the eyes of the rest of the world. As you know, discussions on this major reform have, for the moment, reached something of an impasse. But, whatever the Council's ultimate size and membership, it is also widely agreed that its methods of work need modernizing.