TNAG-0132-FCO40-168-Tariff-preferences-for-developing-countries-1969 — Page 21

CONFIDENTIAL

Rules of Origin

16. There was some discussion on how this question should be

handled with a number of delegations favouring the early establish-

ment of a sub-group of customs experts.

Di Martino (BEC) was,

however, firm on what the C considered the sub-group should do.

They could not agree to harmonisation of rules of origin if that

implied that the Community should change its own rules. They would

apply their own rules and could not modify them. The most the

Community could agree to in this was for the experts to take note of

examples where differing rules worried certain countries but the

experts should make no recommendations in this regard. He added that

the donor countries should request certificates of origin furnished by

the competent authorities of the exporting countries for all goods

claiming preference.

17. There was then some discussion of when the expert sub-group

should meet and how its terms of reference should be drawn up. It

was agreed that the Working Party of the Trade Committee should consider

the terms of reference at the same time as they prepared the summary of

conclusions on safeguards; and that the expert sub-group should aim to

begin its mecting on Tuesday, 4 March.

Working Hypotheses

18. There was a complete reluctance on the part of the Group to

respond to an invitation by Monk (Canada) to give some indication

of the sort of working hypotheses their governments were working to in

drawing up their lists. Monk did, however, volunteer himself that

the Canadians were thinking of

(a) Beneficiaries: a list which appeared to include all

potential claimants;

(b) Depth of cut: initially a "substantial cut across the board,"

falling short of duty free entry, with few or no exceptions,

and with the possibility of further cuts subsequently very

much along the lines of the ideas floated previously by the

Swiss;

CONFIDENTIAL

/(c)