§ Mr. Juddasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether he will make a statement on his discussions in London with Commonwealth Trade Ministers, with particular reference to the policy of Her Majesty's Government on guaranteed access to the EEC for 1.4 million tons per year of Commonwealth sugar.
§ Mr. Alfred Morrisasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement on the outcome of his talks with the trade ministers of the 413W sugar exporting countries of the Common wealth on 28th and 29th March 1973.
§ Mrs. FennerThese talks were summarised in the agreed communiqué issued at the end of the conference, the text of which is as follows:
Representatives of the Governments of Barbados, Belize, Fiji, Guyana, India, Jamaica, Kenya, Mauritius, St. Kitts-Nevis-Anguilla, Swaziland, Tanzania, Trinidad and Tobago, Uganda, and the United Kingdom, and of the Common wealth Sugar Exporters' Association, met at Lancaster House, London, on March 28th and 29th 1973, for consultations on the arrangements for Commonwealth sugar exports to the European Com munity after 1974, when the Common wealth Sugar Agreement will be replaced by arrangements to be worked out between the exporting countries concerned and the Community as a whole.
The discussions took place against the background of the Community's under taking on imports of sugar after 1974 from the developing Commonwealth sugar-exporting countries, as set out in Part III of Protocol 22 to the Treaty of Accession; the Joint Declaration of Intent; and the communiqué issued after the Lancaster House discussions on June 2nd and 3rd 1971, which was subsequently placed on record with the Community.
In accordance with that communiqué, all the Governments affirmed that they would continue to regard the Community's undertaking as "a firm assurance of a secure and continuing market in the enlarged Community on fair terms for the quantities of sugar covered by the Commonwealth Sugar Agreement in re-respect of all its existing developing member countries." The United Kingdom Government re-affirmed that they stand by their assurances contained in that communiqué without reservations, and that they will continue to do so. The exporting countries present made it clear that they had accordingly already planned the future of their sugar industries on the strength of those assurances of long-term access to the enlarged Community and that they would continue to do so.
414WThe Governments of the Common wealth sugar-exporting countries present affirmed their determination to pursue at all stages a unified approach to the forth coming negotiations on sugar with the Community.
They stressed the importance they attached to the necessity for the negotiations on sugar to be entirely separate from those on other products covered by Part III of Protocol 22 and from those concerned with the options extended by Part I of the Protocol. For these reasons, the sugar negotiations required a separate timetable and the exporting countries expressed their intention to seek to open these negotiations with a view to reaching an early conclusion.
In order to facilitate the achievement of the above objectives, the exporting countries have agreed to establish a high level standing committee in London.
All the Governments present emphasised the importance they attach to the Community joining the International Sugar Agreement as soon as possible and playing a constructive part in its operation. In this connection they welcomed the declaration by the Community during UNCTAD III in May 1972, that it was "ready to play an active part in the negotiations in the most firm hope of joining ".
The representatives of the Common wealth Governments present expressed their thanks to the United Kingdom for convening the meeting.