RESTRICTED
6. THE FRENCH SAID THEY COULD ACCEPT THE COMMISSION'S PROPOSALS PRODIVDED THAT RE-IMPOSITION OF DUTIES WAS GENUINELY AUTOMATIC AND THAT THE LIST OF TARIFF QUOTAS WAS EXTENDED FROM 7 TO ABOUT 15.
THE BELGIANS SAID THEY COULD ONLY ACCEPT THE COMMISSION'S PROPOSALS IF THERE WERE ABOUT 30 TARIFF QUOTAS. THE IRISH WANTED AN ADDITIONAL 6 PRODUCTS ON THE SENSITIVE LIST. THE ITALIANS ARGUED STRONGLY AGAINST THE PROPOSED TRANSFER OF PRODUCTS TO THE SEMI SENSITIVE LIST ON THE GROUNDS THAT THEY WOULD NOW BE LIABLE TO HAVE TO TAKE UP TO THE FULL BUTOIR LEVEL FROM A PARTICULAR COUNTRY WHICH WAS VERY MUCH MORE THAN THEIR PRESENT UPPER IMIT DETERMINED BY THEIR SHARE UNDER KEY. THE COMMISSION ACCEPTED THAT THIS WAS A REAL PROBLEM AND SAID THEY HOPED TO OBTAIN ASSURANCES FROM YUGOSLAVIA AND POSSIBLY ALSO FROM HONG KONG ABOUT THE QUANTITIES THEY WOULD SEND TO DIFFERENT MEMBER STATES AND PARTICULARLY THE SMALLER MEMBER STATES. THE GERMANS SAID THEY HAD DIFFICULTIES WITH SOME OF THE PRODUCTS WHICH THE COMMISSION HAD PROPOSED TO TRANSFER TO THE SEMI-SENSITIVE LIST BUT THEY WERE STILL STUDYING THE MATTER.
THE DANES SAID THEY DID NOT WELCOME THE PROPOSALS ON THE HIGHLY COMPETITIVE BUT ACCEPTED THAT THE COMMISSION'S PROPOSALS WERE A PACKAGE: THEY WERE IN FAVOUR OF REDUCTION IN THE SENSITIVE LIST. WE ALSO SAID THAT WE HAD NO PROBLEMS WITH THE PROPOSED REDUCTION IN
THE SENSITIVE LIST. WE WELCOMED THE PROPOSAL TO PROVIDE 50% BUTOIRS FOR ALL THE PRODUCTS TRANSFERRED TO THE SENI-SENSITIVE LIST AND SUGGESTED THAT THE BUTOIRS ON PRODUCTS AT PRESENT IN THE SEMI SENSITIVE LIST SHOULD ALSO BE RAISED TO 50%.
7. THE DUTCH SAID THAT THE PROPOSED OVERALL INCREASE IN QUOTA LEVELS OF SOME 15% WOULD DO LITTLE MORE THAN COVER THE RATE OF INFLATION. WE SAID WE WERE IN PRINCIPLE OF FAVOUR OF USING THE MOST UP-TO-DATE STATISTICS IN THE CALCULATION OF QUOTAS AND
CEILINGS.
❤
3. ON JUTE AND COIR WE AND THE DANES WITH SUPPORT FROM THE
COMMISSION PRESSED FOR THE MAINTENANCE OF ZERO DUTIES. THE COMMISSION ADDED THAT THEY WOULD PROPOSE THE INCLUSION OF THAILAND FOR JUTE AND SRI LANKA FOR COIR. THE FRENCH SAID THEIR AGREEMENT
LAST YEAR TO THE MAINTENANCE OF ZERO TARIFFS BY THE UK AND DENMARK
HAD BEEN FOR ONE YEAR ONLY AND THEY THOUGHT WE SHOULD NOW APPLY
THE COMMUNITY TARIFF. THE ITALIANS ACREED. NO OTHER DELEGATION
HAD ANY OBJECTION TO THE MAINTENANCE OF OUR ZERO DUTIES.
3
19.