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We
it is known what other countries are prepared to offer. are committed to consulting the developing Commonwealth countries but the timing of their consultation is a problem as they themselves cannot know what compensating advantages they would receive until substantive offers are tabled in UCEAD by the other donor countries. India has contractual preferences on
and
a number of items, including certain oils, leathors, cotton textiles, as well as a general right to prior consultation about reductions in preferences, and Pakistan also has contractual rights. The developing Commonwealth countries however appear to accept that consultations with the U.K. would not be useful before they assess our offers against those of the other donors. They should be content if we circulate · our proposals to them as soon as the OECD discussions are. concluded and shortly before they are tabled in UNCTAD so they would feel they have had some special treatment from the U.K. At that time the Commonwealth may wish to bring the Commonwealth Secretariat into the consultation exercise and
we should have to keep closely in touch with them..
The other outstanding problems
32. The purpose of this paper is to discuss what modifications the U.K. should be prepared to make to its submission when the other donors come to adjust their offers, and not to describe all the outstanding problems that need to be resolved before tariff preferences can be implemented but some indication of these should be made. In addition to those already referred to above (burden-sharing, existing preferences), some of the most difficult of these problems are the definition of developing countries, safeguard arrangements, rules of origin
and reverse preferences.
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