HC Deb 20 February 1985 vol 73 c454W
Mr. Hunter

asked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what is the estimated cost of non-tariff barriers to trade within the European Community.

Mr. Channon

There are a number of published estimates of the cost of non-tariff barriers to trade as a whole within the European Community, though these have concentrated mainly on the costs incurred at border crossings. In particular, I refer my hon. Friend to the following publications which are available from the Library:

  • — European Commission Communication of the State of the Internal Market (COM(81)313)—June 1981.
  • — House of Lords Select Committee on the European Communities, Session 1981–82, 17th Report — Internal Market—July 1982.
  • — "Towards European Economic Recovery in the 1980s" —Report presented to the European Parliament by Mr. M. Albert and Prof. R. J. Ball—July 1983.

They put the cost at around 12 billion ecu pa (roughly £7 billion).