1. G8

2. Who are the G8? The G8 (Group of eight), comprises seven of the world's leading industrialised nations; (Germany, France, Canada, Italy, Japan, the UK and the US) and Russia. The leaders of these countries meet face-to-face at an annual summit that has become a focus of media attention and protest action. With no headquarters, budget or permanent staff, the Group of Eight is an informal but exclusive body whose members set out to tackle global challenges through discussion and action.

3. Why was the G8 formed? The G8's roots lie in the oil crisis and global economic recession of the early 1970s. In 1973, these challenges prompted the US to form the Library Group - an informal gathering of senior financial officials from Europe, Japan and the US. At the instigation of the French, the 1975 meeting drew in heads of government. The delegates agreed to meet annually. The six nations involved became known as the G6, and later the G7 and G8 after the respective entries of Canada (1976) and Russia (1998).

4. Though the G8 was originally set up as a forum for economic and trade matters, politics crept onto the agenda in the late 1970s. Recent summits have considered the developing world, global security, Middle East peace and reconstruction in Iraq. G8 members can agree on policies and can set objectives, but compliance with these is voluntary. The G8 has influence in other world bodies because of the economic and political power of its members.

5. What are the aims of the G8? Leaders of G8 countries aim to: Boost cooperation over trade and finance Strengthen the global economy Promote peace and democracy Prevent and resolve conflicts

6. Who is the leader of the G8? The presidency of the G8 rotates between the group's member nations on an annual basis. The country holding the presidency in a given year is responsible for hosting the annual summit and for handling the security arrangements. As the foremost economic and political power in the G8, the US is regarded as the dominant member of the group, although this position is not formally official.

7. Criticisms of the G8 Critics of the G8 have accused the body of representing the interests of an elite group of industrialised nations, to the disadvantage of the needs of the wider world. Important countries with fast-growing economies and large populations, including China and India, are not represented. There are no African or Latin American members. The G8's positive stance on globalisation has provoked a vigorous response from opponents, and riots have sometimes overshadowed summit agendas, most notably in Italy in 2001. The violence has encouraged a tightening of the security cordon that separates protesters and politicians, reinforcing the G8's closed-door image.

8. However, Members argue that it's an informal way of helping solve some of the world's biggest problems and who better to do that than the world's most powerful countries.

9. What have the G8 achieved? Setting up the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (the Global Fund) Establishing a new relationship with Africa with the G8 Africa Action Plan in response to the African-led New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD) Launching the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative, an agreed process for cancelling the debt of the world's poorest countries Action against money laundering (through the Financial Action Task Forces), which many other countries have now joined. Agreement that all G8 countries will consider halving emissions by 2050 and that all major emitters should be involved in a comprehensive, global post 2012 Kyoto framework to tackle global warming through the UN by 2009.

10. Coverage in the media The G8 have a lot of media coverage both good and bad, here are just a few of the many newspaper headlines from around the world… " G8 Climate Deal Signals a Breakthrough," by Roger Harrabin, BBC News Online, June 8, 2007 " G-8 AIDS Proposal is Criticized, but Putin Breaks Ice," by Sheryl Gay Stolberg and Mike Nizza, International Herald Tribune, June 8, 2007. " G-8 Fails to Agree on Kosovo's Future," by Judy Dempsey, International Herald Tribune, June 8, 2007 " G8 Leaders 'fail Africa with deceptive pledge,'" by David Blair and Sally Peck, The Telegraph, June 8, 2007. " G-8 Leaders Trade Conflicting Views on Warming," by Michael A. Fletcher and Craig Whitlock, The Washington Post, June 8, 2007. " G8 Protesters Claim Victory, but was Message Heard?" by Erik Kirschbaum, Reuters, June 8, 2007. " G-8 and Africa: Be our Partners, Not our Patrons," by Abdoulaye Wade, International Herald Tribune, June 8, 2007. " G-8 OKs 'Substantial Cuts' in Warming Gases," MSNBC Online, June 7, 2007. " US Rejects German G8 Climate Goal," BBC News Online, June 6, 2007. " The True Value of What the G8 Gives in Aid," by Paul Vallely, The Independent, June 4, 2007