HL Deb 27 July 1998 vol 592 c173WA
Lord Pearson of Rannoch

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Further to the Written Answer by the Baroness Symons of Vernham Dean on 16 July (WA 48), which seven European Union member states joined the United Kingdom in a joint statement deploring the European Commission's decision to reimpose provisional anti-dumping duties on imports of unbleached cotton fabric from six non-European Union countries; and how many qualified majority votes accrue to each of those member states. [HL3029]

The Minister of State, Department of Trade and Industry (Lord Clinton-Davis)

The member states making the joint statement with the UK were Austria, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands and Sweden.

If voting is by qualified majority, the voting weights are as follows: Austria—4; Denmark—3; Finland—3; Germany—10; Ireland—3; the Netherlands—5; Sweden—4 and the UK—10. However, voting on a Commission proposal for a regulation imposing definitive duties is by simple majority, with each member state having one vote.