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a more restrictive policy on the quantitative limitation of
imports of cotton textiles; third, that the development of
the Community's common commercial policy in general will
make it necessary for Britain to restrict imports from Hong
Kong of other goods. The Governor has asked that our
opening position should be to request association under
Part IV of the Rome Treaty for Hong Kong, which he recognises
to be unacceptable to the Six, but which he thinks would have
great presentational value in Hong Kong. We have made it
clear that we see no advantage in putting to the Six proposals
which we know in advance to be unacceptable. Another idea
which we know to have received consideration, at any rate at
the working level in the Hong Kong Government, is that we
should seek an arrangement under which Britain continued to
import duty free from Hong Kong either certain specified
products which while not now of great importance to Hong Kong
may become so in the future, or a certain group of products
which in a given base year made up an agreed percentage of.
Hong Kong's exports to Britain.
The Foreign Secretary's Speech at W.E.U. on 4 July
11.
When it became clear at the E.E.C. Council meeting on
26 June that, because of French opposition, we should not
be given the chance of putting our case for membership
of the Community in Brussels before the Autumn, the suggestion
was made by the Belgian and German Foreign Ministers and
subsequently by the Italian and Dutch Government that we
should make our opening statement to the W.E.U. Ministerial
Meeting, under the general economic item which has formed
part of the agenda for W.E.U. Ministerial meetings since
1963. The statement which was made on this occasion is
the statement which would have been made to the Community
in Brussels had the opportunity been given, The statement
puts the case for British membership of the Communities;
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