§ 1. Mr. Silvesterasked the Secretary of State for Trade what progress has been made towards the agreement of the EEC draft directive on independent commercial agents.
§ The Under-Secretary of State for Trade (Mr. Eric Deakins)In May and June 1975 officials of my Department had useful informal talks with Commission officials, who, we understand, are now reviewing the provisions of their draft proposal. My Department is keeping in touch with developments.
§ Mr. SilvesterI am glad to hear that things are moving now, although I realise that events are taking place only at official level. What precisely is the objection of the Department? As I understand it, all other eight countries have agreed to the draft before the Commission.
§ Mr. DeakinsIt is a matter of difficulties rather than of objection, and some of the difficulties are significant. As drafted the proposal would cover a much wider range of activities than the Commission intends. We are obviously seeking solutions for our part, and we believe that Commission officials are doing the same. We are considering the draft sympathetically in the light of problems in agency relationships.
§ Mr. MontgomeryAmong the interested bodies with which the Department has had discussions was the United Commercial Travellers' Association, which felt that far from being consulted it was 1266 merely being questioned on aspects of its work. Would it not be sensible for the Department to have full discussions with people vitally connected with this work before going on to negotiations with the other members of the Nine?
§ Mr. DeakinsI have seen the United Commercial Travellers' Association in talks which took place on the 17th July. I had a long and useful discussion with the parliamentary agent and the general secretary. I left them in no doubt that we had been consulting them in the way we had been consulting other interested bodies. The consultations go back as far as the middle of 1973.