§ Mr. Speedasked the Minister for Trade if he will list the imports of cars from and exports of cars to (a) Spain, (b) Australia, (c) Poland, (d) the USSR, (e) Korea, (f) Czechoslovakia and (g) Jugoslavia, respectively for the past year and the appropriate duties and quotas applicable to such imports and exports.
§ Mr. Sproat[pursuant to his reply, 6 May 1983, c. 170]: The information is as follows:
224W
Trade in 1982 with specified countries in complete passenger motor cars United Kingdom Imports United Kingdom Exports Numbers Value £ thousand cif Numbers Value £ thousand fob Spain 50,787 119,234 1,556 5,592 Australia 122 704 3,673 24,099
United Kingdom Imports United Kingdom Exports Numbers Value £ thousand cif Numbers Value £ thousand fob Poland 5,736 5,922 44 140 USSR 18,139 23,193 66 264 South Korea 4,512 8,756 9,654 7,438 Czechoslovakia 9,237 7,475 3 8 Yugoslavia 2,143 2,312 103 611 Source: data corresponding to SITC(R2) Group 781 in the United Kingdom Overseas Trade Statistics.
Notes on Imports
(a) The 1983 rates of duty are as follows:—
Per cent. Per cent. Spain 4.2 USSR 10.5 Australia 10.5 Czechoslovakia 10.5 Poland 10.5 Yugoslavia nil (b) Cars imported from South Korea with an engine capacity exceeding 1,500cc are free of duty, under the European Community's generalised scheme of preferences. Imports with an engine capacity not exceeding 1,500cc are free of duty within the limit of a tariff quota of £4,875,938—if 90 per cent. of the quota is taken up, it may be increased by up to £1,950,375 from Community reserves; thereafter the full common customs tarriff of 10.5 per cent. applies to any further imports.
Notes on Exports
(c) The current duty on cars imported into Spain from the European Community is 36.7 per cent. Spain will shortly open two low-duty quotas for these imports. The duty will be reduced to 19 per cent. on 5,000 cars sold as between 1,300cc and 1,600cc, and to 25 per cent. on 10,000 cars sold as between 2,000cc and 2,600cc.
(d) Australia operates a tariff of 57½ per cent. on imported motor cars, and a quota restricts total imports to 20 per cent. of the domestic market.
(e) In the centrally planned economies — including Poland, the USSR and Czechoslovakia—Customs duties are the responsibility of the importing organisation and do not necessarily influence either the importer's interest in the product or the final selling price on the domestic market. There are no formal published quotas. Poland applies import duties of 30 per cent. to special-purpose passenger cars and 40 per cent. to general-purpose passenger cars. Czechoslovakia applies a duty of 19 per cent. to all imports of passenger cars. Precise information on the current tarrif position in the USSR is not available at present.
(f) In South Korea, motor vehicles are subject to import licensing restrictions. Rates of duty range from 60 to 150 per cent. There are additional special excise taxes ranging from 15 to 40 per cent., a defence tax of 2.5 per cent. and VAT of 10 per cent.
(g) Passenger motor cars imported into Yugoslavia are subject to the following rates of duty:
Per cent. up to 950cc 30 from 950cc to 1,600cc 45 from 1,600cc to 2,000cc 60 over 2,000cc 80 In addition, a special equalisation tax of 6 per cent. is levied on the cif value, plus a Customs clearance charge of 1 per cent. on the cif value. Cars are imported within the limits of a commodity quota, details of which are not published.