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W(B)L 51-7406
of countries in the Commonwealth preference
area, mainly because it discriminates against
countries which had not fully established
themselves in the market in 1962-64, the base
period for the quotas. The pattern of
categorisation is also becoming increasingly
out of date. Moreover the textile cycle is
expected to turn downwards in 1970, a year in
which it would have been extraordinarily
difficult for HMG to have let things go on as
they are. It is in this context that your
attention is invited to the assurance of the
President of the Board of Trade that we are
not setting a precedent for tariffs on other
Commonwealth products:
cotton textiles are,
by international consent, a special case.