CONFIDENTIAL

En Mytaut

zydū

United Kingdom Delegation to

the European Communities,

52 avenue des Arts,

1040 Brussels.

17 December, 1970.

Dear Ray,

•TRK6/12

Hong Kong

350

312

on the upshot of 7. I now enclose tee of Permanent

I also enclose trade covered by

We have reported in CODEL Tel. No. the Community's working group .on Hong a copy of the group's report to the Cor Representatives and of its detailed anuas. a copy of an assessment of the volume oi the Community's envisaged inclusion of Hong Kong in their preference scheme.

2. In handing over these documents, Tran made a number of points:

(i) The Community position was now more generous than he

had thought likely at an earlier stage.

(ii) The Community offer was an autonomous one relating to We should the present six-member Community's scheme. therefore not expect to get far by trying to enlarge it at this stage. We would do best to take this as it stood and to try to influence the scheme when we came into the Community ourselves and the tariff quotas had to be re-calculated on the basis of an enlarged Community.

(iii)He was still worried about the items listed as being excluded on the grounds of origin. It might be preferable to have these items excluded by means of a "gentlemen's agreement" between Hong Kong and the Community merely stating that Hong Kong would not expect preferential treatment for these items. Hong Kong need not worry that her competitors would get preferences on these items; they too would either be excluded on the grounds of origin or by some other method. In any case if Hong Kong were excluded its exports to the Community would not be included in the basic figure for calculating the tariff quotas on these items:

G. R. Denman, Esq., C.M.G.,

Department of Trade and Industry.

/(iv)

CONFIDENTIAL

Mr. Brind

cc. Mr. Perceral T.P.D.

Mr. Kinnear H.K.D.

Enter/p.... Mp 18/12

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