§ Mr. Peter Griffithsasked the Secretary of State for Transport if officials of his Department have held discussions with officials of the European Community in Brussels about the conformity of the proposed United Kingdom dim-dip regulations with the rules of the Common Market concerning restrictions on trade; and what was the outcome.
§ Mrs. ChalkerThe Department has held discussions with European Commission officials about our proposed dim-dip regulations. It is clear that under the EC treaty we have freedom to introduce regulations along the lines of those we have circulated for comment. The question which has arisen is on the need to include an exemption for vehicles which have been approved to the relevant EC directive in respect of the installation of lighting devices. The legal advice I have had is that no such exemption is necessary, and this has been explained to the Commission.