TNAG-0298-FCO40-334-Entitlement-of-Hong-Kong-to-generalized-tariffs-preferences--1971 — Page 74

"tos

бе

CRE 2

MR JN COMEN

You asked for a draft reply to the further letter from Mr Peter Blaker, MP.

All we can say in reply to his second paragraph is, I think:

"You mentioned Hong Kong's anxiety that cotton textiles shipped under quota in late 1971 should not be subject, if they arrived in this country in early 1972, to the new tariff on Commonwealth Preference Area goods. We are currently consid- ering representations from the Hong Kong Government on this subject, but I am not yet in a position to say whether it will be possible to make the concession they are seeking.

The background to all this is given in Mr Ridley's minute to Mr Brearley (copied to Mr Toms). As you will see from that, we could only make a tariff concession in a dangerously open- ended manner, and it therefore looks as though we shall have to abandon the idea of meeting Hong Kong's wishes,

CODE 18-76

cc Mr Morris CRE1

Mr Ingram CRE3

Mr Dexter, Commodities Dept, FC0.1

Bow

(MISS C H WELCH) Millbank Tower, Ext 192

Jo March 1971