§ Mr. Nicholas Wintertonasked the Secretary of State for Industry if he will make a statement on the "bunching" of textile quotas; and what action he intends to take to restrict this practice.
Mr. Alan WilliamsAll the agreements under the GATT Multi-Fibre Arrangement between the EEC and supplying countries contain provisions requiring that imports are spaced out as evenly as possible over the quota year, due account being taken of seasonal factors. Shipments in 1976 of a few products under quota have been concentrated in the first half of the year, and where seasonal factors 85W do not account for this, the EEC Commission has been asked to contact the supplying countries concerned to ensure that their shipments are in future more evenly spaced.