7. We consider that the
following, which we are informed has been adopted by the Council,
raises questions of political importance, but make no recommendation
for its further consideration:-
FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH
OFFICE
(17882)-
-
| Draft Council Regulation introducing safeguard measures on imports of rice from overseas countries and territories (OCT).
|
| Legal base:
| Article 109 and, Annex IV, Article 1.7 of the OCT Decision 91/482/CEE; qualified majority voting.
|
Background
7.1 Community arrangements
with the OCT[19]
allows rice to be imported duty-free. In 1991-92 imports of rice
from the OCT were about 19,000 tonnes; they have now increased
to 200,000 tonnes (milled rice equivalent) most of it coming from
the Dutch Antilles. This has supplanted Community production
particularly of indica (long grain) rice which will have to be
put into intervention. Italy and Spain requested safeguard action
which the Commission took on 8 January.
Present position
7.2 The Commission safeguard
action, which it is empowered to take on its own authority, restricted
imports for the first four months of 1997 to 42,000 tonnes. This
was divided between OCT suppliers in such a way that the Dutch
Antilles got the major share, with only 4,594 tonnes being allocated
to Montserrat and 1,328 tonnes to the Turks and Caicos Islands.
This allocation severely affected Montserrat in particular.
Under Annex IV, Article 1.7 of the OCT Decision, the Council can
adopt a different decision from that taken by the Commission within
20 working days. This deadline expires on 19 February.
7.3 In an Explanatory
Memorandum dated 13 February 1997, the Minister of State at the
Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Sir Nicholas Bonsor) explains
that the ECOFIN Council on 17 February provided the last opportunity
for agreement within the deadline. There was a qualified majority
in favour of the combined quota for Montserrat and the Turks and
Caicos Islands being increased to 8,000 tonnes.
7.4 In a separate letter,
also dated 13 February, the Minister said:
"Delaying agreement
of the amendment by placing a scrutiny reserve would prolong,
until at least the end of April, the hardship for Montserrat and
Turks and Caicos Islands, and call into doubt the seriousness
which we attach to the matter. In these circumstances I hope
that you will understand why we have felt that a serious UK interest
is at stake and that we should not withhold our agreement
in the Council on Monday [17 February]."
Conclusion
7.5 We accept that
the Commission needed to take action to control the very large
increase in rice from the OCT (mainly from the Dutch Antilles)
and share the Government's concern that any safeguard action limit
should be fairly allocated. The additional quota for Montserrat
and the Turks and Caicos Islands is therefore welcome.
7.6 We accept the
Minister's compelling reasons to giving agreement to this proposal
before Scrutiny. When he wrote to us on 13 February he told us
that the UK Government did not have a final text, and that there
was no English version. We acknowledge that the deadline for
the Council adopting a decision different from that taken by the
Commission is an unusual circumstance, and in this case we are
prepared to clear the document without an official text.
19 OCTs are overseas countries and territories associated with the EC (Netherlands Antilles, French Polynesia, British Virgin Islands, etc.). Back
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