TNAG-0142-FCO40-178-Long-term-policy-on-International-trade-in-textiles-1969 — Page 132

Of total

In the field of trade, there is no question of

greater importance to Hong Kong than the future

international regulation of trade in textiles.

domestic exports worth £577 millions in 1968, exports of

textiles, including garments, were worth nearly £277

millions. 83 millions of Hong Kong's export earnings

were accounted for by garments sold to the U.S.A. Any

drastic curtailment of the textile trade would thus have

disastrous economic, social, and therefore political,

effects in the Colony. In exercising their

responsibilities for Hong Kong, Ministers ought not to

take the risk of adopting any policy which could have

such effects.

2.

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When so much is at stake, the Hong Kong Government

is bound to feel anxious over the lack of clarity in the

paper before Ministers on the objectives and terms of

reference of the working party "to review the (textiles)

situation and recommend the best way of dealing with it".

It is unlikely to regard definition of these objectives

as something which can be put on one side at this juncture,

but rather as a matter crucial to the whole textile policy

of H.M.G. If the views of Hong Kong Government

representatives in recent discussions are any guide this

will be because, just as the B.O.T. fears that more

voluntary restraints may lead to an extension of the

Cotton Textiles Arrangement to non-cottons "by the back

door", so the Hong Kong Government believes that attempts

to deal with the textiles situation through a working

party may lead to definition of the GATT escape clause

mechanism which will work against the interests of the

developing countries not only in the case of textiles

but also on other products.

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