HC Deb 09 December 1996 vol 287 c29W
Mr. Shore

To ask the Secretary of the Board of Trade what is the 1996 average level of the common external tariff of the European Union; what was the average level in(a) 1966, (b) 1976 and (c) 1986; and what the common tariff level is planned to be when the Uruguay round is finally implemented. [7461]

Mr. Nelson

In 1966, 1976 and 1986, the average levels of the common external tariff of the European Union in the industrial sector were in the order of 12 per cent., 9.5 per cent. and 6.5 per cent. respectively. Precise figures are not available. Moreover, there are no equivalent figures for the agricultural sector in those years because chapters 1 to 24 of the common external tariff then contained many specific rates, for example by weight or by volume. The Uruguay round of multilateral trade negotiations was the first such round in which the ad valorem equivalents of specific rates were calculated, thus enabling inclusion of agricultural products in the average tariff level. The average level of the overall common external tariff in 1996 is 4 per cent. When the Uruguay round is fully implemented it will be 3.2 per cent.