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COORDINATE THEIR POSITION BEFORE MULTILATERAL NEGOTIATIONS OPEN
IN GENEVA. CONTRIBUTIONS SHOULD REACH US BY 3 MARCH IF WE ARE TO
TAKE YOUR VIEWS INTO ACCOUNT IN BRIEFING FOR THE FOREIGN AFFAIRS
COUNCIL ON 10/11 MARCH, AT WHICH THE COMMUNITY'S OWN NEGOTIATING
POSITION IS LIKELY TO BE FINALISED.
4.
3. IN PRESENTING OUR POSITION TO YOUR HOST GOVERNMENTS, YOU WILL
WISH TO BEAR IN MIND THAT EXTERNAL TRADE POLICY IS AN AREA OF
EXCLUSIVE COMMUNITY COMPETENCE, AND THAT STRICTLY IT IS FOR THE
COMMISSION RATHER THAN ANY INDIVIDUAL MEMBER STATE TO REPRESENT
THE EC POSITION. NEVERTHELESS, WE WISH TO ENSURE THAT SUPPLIER
COUNTRIES ARE AWARE THAT THE UK HAS MOVED AWAY FROM THE VERY
RESTRICTIVE POSITION ADOPTED WHEN THE MFA WAS LAST RENEWED IN
1982, DESPITE THE LOSS OF 250,000 JOBS IN THE UK TEXTILE INDUSTRY
SINCE 1980 AND THE CONTINUING IMPORTANCE OF TEXTILES AS A MAJOR
UK MANUFACTURING INDUSTRY WHICH STILL EMPLOYS 500,000 PEOPLE.
BACKGROUND IS IN GUIDANCE TELNO 77 OF 23 MAY 1985, WHICH
REMAINS LARGELY VALID, THOUGH YOU WILL WISH TO TAKE ACCOUNT OF
MINISTERIAL SPEECHES AT THE LAST MFA DEBATE IN THE HOUSE OF
COMMONS ON 13 FEBRUARY (RETRACT NO. 29 OF 14 FEBRUARY). THE
COMMUNITY MADE A STATEMENT AT THE GATT TEXTILES COMMITTEE ON 23
JULY (COPY BY BAG) FOLLOWING DISCUSSION AT THE FOREIGN AFFAIRS
COUNCIL ON 22 JULY IN WHICH THE COMMUNITY AGREED TO SEEK TO
NEGOTIATE AN EXTENSION TO THE PRESENT MFA, BUT IN MORE FLEXIBLE
FORM AND PROVIDED THAT AN EFFORT COMMENSURATE WITH THEIR LEVEL OF
DEVELOPMENT WAS MADE BY OTHERS TO OPEN THEIR TEXTILES TRADE. IN
DECEMBER THE COMMISSION TABLED THEIR DRAFT MANDATE FOR BOTH THE
MULTILATERAL AND BILATERAL NEGOTIATIONS (THE MFA WILL EXPIRE ON
31 JULY, AND NEARLY ALL THE COMMUNITY'S BILATERAL AGREEMENTS WITH
MFA SUPPLIERS WILL NEED TO BE RENEWED BEFORE 31 DECEMBER), THE
COUNCIL IS MAKING PROGRESS TOWARDS A COMMON POSITION ON THIS VERY
DETAILED DOCUMENT AS REPORTED IN TUR. AT THE LIBERAL END OF THE
SPECTRUM THE DANES, THE DUTCH AND THE GERMANS ARE PRESSING FOR
THE COMMUNITY TO GRANT SUBSTANTIALLY FREER ACCESS TO MFA
SUPPLIERS: AT THE OTHER EXTREME, SPAIN, PORTUGAL, GREECE, ITALY,
BELGIUM AND IRELAND ARE ALL RESISTING LIBERALISATION OF THE
PRESENT ARRANGEMENTS. THE FRENCH TEND TOWARDS THE PROTECTIONIST
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