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HEILIGENDAMM, Germany - You can stop staring hopefully at that phone, Bono. Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper will not be calling.
The Irish rock star turned poverty activist met US President George W. Bush and German Chancellor Angela Merkel on the sidelines of a Group of Eight summit but was told Harper was too busy to talk to him.
Harper, a somewhat wooden figure regularly mocked for his lack of flair, told reporters today that meeting Bono was not a priority.
"I've got to say that meeting celebrities isn't kind of my stick, that was the stick of the previous guy," said Harper in a dig at his Liberal predecessor Paul Martin, who met Bono regularly.
"I hope we do it at some point but my principle focus in public policies is not kind of to meet celebrities," added the prime minister, a Conservative.
Activists say Canada is trying to block a deal to ensure that western nations live up to promises to boost aid to Africa.
For the record, though, Harper said he liked the music of Bono's band U2.
- REUTERS
