Australia to host G20 summit in 2014

Australia Capital Territory (ACT) and Victoria's officials on Saturday said the two states will host the G20 summit in 2014. Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard announced earlier on Saturday that world leaders had asked Australia to host the event in 2014. Gillard said she would consult with state premiers on which city would host the leaders' gathering in three years. ACT Chief Minister Katy Gallagher said Canberra had several strengths, but the city was limited by its size and capacity in the number of hotel beds available for an event the size of the G20 leaders summit. She expected there will be 8500 delegates and journalists attending the 2014 event, and they generated over 35,000 bed nights. In that context, Gallagher said there are some issues ACT state government need to work through, but as the national capital, the state would want to play some role in the G20 summit. Meanwhile, Victorian Premier Ted Baillieu also said the state government would work with the Commonwealth to explore the option of Melbourne hosting the event. "As Australia's leading international city, Melbourne would be an ideal location to host the G20 in 2014," he said in a statement released on Saturday, adding that Melbourne had a proven track record in hosting international events and had a strong public transport system and excellent conference venues. Gillard said hosting the G20 will "allow Australia to shape the international agenda on issues such as the global economy, financial regulation, trade, jobs and clean energy." This year's G20 summit was held in Cannes of French. Russia will host the G20 summit in 2013 and Turkey in 2015.