20 DEC '93 12:20 DTI ECTR3B ASHDOWN HSE
FAX MESSAGE
P.1
14
To:
Ms Bouch HKD/FCO
From:
Stephen Childerstone ECTR 3b/DTI
tel: 215 5742 fax: 215 5014 RE
HV.B 121/10
08 FEE 1994
20th December 1993
Two pages
US ANTITRUST NOTIFICATION: VTECH
Thank you for your fax of today's date.
You asked for a copy of our standard advice to companies that have been asked to co-operate
co-operate voluntarily with US antitrust investigations. Our advice would generally be along the lines of:
"You may be aware that the British Government is sensitive to the actions of US regulatory authorities which seek to impose US law on UK [or dependent territories] companies' operations located outside US jurisdiction. Any request for your company to provide information located in the UK [Hong Kong] on a voluntary basis should, however, pose no jurisdictional problems for us.
We have been notified of this investigation in accordance with the 1986 OECD Recommendation on the Notification of Restrictive Business Practices Investigations. The Recommendation provides for arrangements for consultation and notification of antitrust actions by one Member State of the OECD involving the interests of another Member State."
There are a number of points that you might like to make to the Hong Kong Government:
1) The DoJ is asking for voluntary co-operation. We have no way of knowing that the company will wish
wish to refuse such co- operation. Nor is there any indication at this stage that the DOJ would seek to enforce disclosure in the event that the company is unforthcoming. We should cross such bridges when we come to them.
2) Although the Protection of Trading Interests Act, 1980 has been extended to Hong Kong, it is our understanding that the final decision as to its invocation in Hong Kong rests with the Secretary of State.
3) The US has notified us of the investigation in accordance with an OECD recommendation and a UK/US bilateral agreement. Since Hong Kong nis party to neither agreement, the US might well argue that it was under no obligation to notify us in this case.