RESTRICTED
ΠΩ
R P Hope Esq CT Division DTI
Millbank Tower
dr. Minor to see
saris /ourary
مسم سلل
سم
frow ow
very
عشان
29 October 1973
تسم
.
29:2
RESTRAINTS ON COTTON YARN
1. Thank you for giving us the opportunity to comment on your draft submission to Ministers (Miss Lowne's minute of 22 October). 2. Our first thought is that the paper gives far too little weight to the difficulties which are likely to be encountered in seeking the Community's agreement. The only legal possibility for maintaining restrictions on products on the common liberalisation list is to seek agreement to protective measures under Article 10 (the safe- guard clause). This requires us to prove that the product is im- ported into the Community "in such greatly increased quantities and/ or on such terms or conditions as to cause, or threaten to cause, substantial injury to Community producers" and that there is "a critical situation in which any delay would cause injury which it would be difficult to remedy". It is difficult to see how, on the basis of the arguments given in the paper, a case of this kind could be made out. It is true that agreement has been reached on a tem- porary derogation valid for 1973, but we would certainly encounter much firmer objections from some Member States and would come under considerable pressure from the Commission if we were to seek further derogations. It seems most unlikely that derogations would be agreed for longer than a year which means that we would have to conduct an annual battle with the Community for the next three years to maintain our restrictions.
3.
We feel bound also to point to the apparent inconsistency of what is proposed with our general policy in the Community on res- trictions on textiles. Both in the context of discussions on the multilateral agreement on textiles, and in discussions on the Com- munity's bilateral agreements, we constantly stress the need for clear demonstration of injury or of an actual threat of injury as
We also emphasise the a precondition of any restrictive action. need to justify existing restrictions on the basis of the same criteria as new restrictions. It seems that for us to argue a case in the working group on textiles (as we would have to do)
which/