§ Mr. Austin Mitchellasked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether he will impose an antidumping duty on imports of commercial vehicles from MAN of Germany; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Alan Clark[pursuant to his reply, 17 February 1987]: The treaty of Rome does not recognise the concept of dumping between member states. However, competition between undertakings in different parts of the Community is governed by the competition rules in articles 85 and 86 of the treaty of Rome. In relation to motor vehicles these rules are administered by the EC Commission.
§ Mr. Austin Mitchellasked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps are taken to ensure that complete cars imported by General Motors from their plants in Germany are not being sold at less than the fair market value in their country of origin.
§ Mr. Alan Clark[pursuant to his reply, 17 February 1987]: There are no grounds for the Government to interfere in General Motors' pricing policy for cars which it imports from Germany. The treaty of Rome does not recognise the concept of dumping between member states and it is not uncommon for the price of motor vehicles to vary according to the member state in which they are sold. General Motors and other motor vehicle manufacturers must, however, determine their pricing strategy with regard to United Kingdom and EC competition laws. Responsibility for investigating complaints of anticompetitive behaviour under these laws rests with, respectively, the Director General of Fair Trading and the European Commission.