§ Mr. Austin Mitchellasked the Secretary of State for Trade if it is now his policy to impose countervailing measures on imports whenever foreign suppliers have access to cheaper materials and components than domestic suppliers.
§ Mr. ParkinsonNo. Responsibility for taking countervailing action against suppliers outside the Community now rests with the European Commission.454W Under Community legislation implementing the 1979 GATT agreement on subsidies and countervailing measures a countervailing duty can only be imposed in such circumstances if the relevant raw materials or components are in some way subsidised and the effect of the subsidy on the exported product is such as to cause material injury to a Community industry.