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SIR MICHAEL PALLISER'S ACTUAL WORDS. WERE:
"...In accordance with instructions received from the British Government I should like to make a short statement about Generalised Preferences for hong Kong.
(ii) In the statement which the Foreign and Commonwealth Secretary made in the Council on 4 June he said:
"We need substantial improvement in the position of Hong Kong where at present the UK has to discriminate against one of its own territories."
(iii) We were greatly pleased to see that in the proposals which they made public last week the Commission are suggesting that as regards footwear the Community should abandon discrimination against Hong Kong. We very much hope that when we come to discuss these proposals the other Member States of the Community will be able to agree.
(iv) Naturally the Commission's recent proposals do not touch the textile sector because of the need for the Community to define and negotiate arrangements governing imports of textiles within the framework of the new multifibres agreement. The present position is that the Community discriminates against Hong Kong in comparison with other Asian suppliers, such as South Korea, which benefits from preferences for its exports of textiles to the Community.
(v) We therefore await with interest the Commission's forthcoming proposals on the treatment of textiles under the Generalised System of Preferences in 1975. In the the light of what we have said, and in recognition of the fact that Hong Kong depends upon exports for its survival, we would expect the Commission to propose a substantial step towards the elimination of discrimination against Hong Kong in this field; and we would expect that the Community as a whole will be able to accept proposals in this sense.
(vi) I am obviously not asking for discussion of this matter today but I do ask that what I have said should be noted...."
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./YOUR
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