UK DEPENDENT TERRITORIES AND JAPANESE GENERALISED PREFERENCE
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1. In an Aide Memoire delivered to the MFA on 18 August 1970, HMG's reasons for hoping that Hong Kong might be accorded beneficiary status in the Japanese Generalised Preference Scheme were set out in detail. HMG understand that consideration is still being given by the Japanese Government to Hong Kong's claim and they trust that a decision will be taken to include Hong Kong on terms that reflect Japan's position among the most highly industrialised countries of the world.
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It had been HMG's understanding that, except in the case of Hong Kong, whose special circumstances required separate consideration, Japan's intention was to accept dependent territories in principle as eligible to benefit under the Japanese scheme. Recent discussions with the MFA and the Japanese Embassy in London have however shown that this is not so, and that the present provisional decision is to exclude such territories in principle. HMG therefore now wish to draw the Japanese Government's attention to the claim to beneficiary status of the United Kingdom's other dependent territories and those countries for who se external relations and/or the conduct thereof HMG are responsible. The list of these, and their claim to developing status, were put forward at the UNCTAD Special Committee on Preferences. in October 1970. A list reproduced from the official UNCTAD record is attached as Annex A.
3. HMG have noted that the basis of the Japane se conclusion that dependent territories should in principle not be admitted as beneficiaries is that such territories are the responsi- bility of the metropolitcan power. They assume therefore that no such difficulty will arise in the case of those
RECEIVED IN REGISTRY No 51 -641971
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