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ANNEX 'B'
Statement by the President
of the Board of Trade in
Parliament on 22 July, 1969
The Government have now completed their examination of the Textile Council's Report on Cotton and Allied Textiles.
The report addressed a number of recommendations to both the Government and the industry, and these have been the subject of continuing consultations with the council.
The recommendations to the industry concerned, in particular, the need to increase the rate of re-equipment, to extend multi- shift working, and to develop closer technical and commercial links between the different stages of production and marketing. I attach great importance to these three requirements, and I am working closely with the Textile Council on their implementation.
The main recommendations to the Government concerned future policy on imports and financial assistance to encourage re-equip- ment.
On import policy, the council recommended that the present quota system should be replaced by a tariff on imports of cotton textiles from the Commonwealth preference area at a rate not less than 85 per cent of the most-favoured-nation duties. On cotton cloth, the main item of trade, this would mean a duty of 15 per cent. The council believes that a tariff would be a better solution both for the industry and the country than a continuation of quotas.
4
It
would offer a margin of protection that was both stable and predictable so enabling the industry to plan ahead with confidence.
CONFIDENTIAL
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