CONFIDENTIAL
RECORD OF TEXTILES POLICY: MEETING AT DEPARTMENT OF TRADE
AND INDUSTRY ON 3 NOVEMBER 1971.
59
Mr Ridley said that although the recent ECS report
confirmed the views in his interim submission to Sir John Eden
that rising imports was only one factor in a multiplicity of
factors which had led to the deteriorating situation in
Lancashire, new factors were:
(a) unemployment redundancies in the textile industry
were not being absorbed by other jobs;
(b)
we should be moving back to q.r.s. in 1973;
(c)
the recent US restriction agreements on man-made
fibres with the Asian suppliers.
2.
The immediate problem was that for political reasons
something had to be said in the debate on the introduction of
the new tariff on CPA cotton textiles in mid-November which
would encourage Lancashire.
3. Following substantive discussion (recorded separately in
a fuller minute) Mr Ridley summed up by saying that the draft
submission to DTI Ministers should take the following form:
(a) an analysis of the situation and pointers to the
various threats;
(b) a statement of the various constraints imposed by
our international obligations;
(c)
the political awkwardness vis-a-vis the Commonwealth
of our taking action;
(a)
an underlining of the fact that any restrains will
hit Hong Kong particularly hard.
CONFIDENTIAL