"That the Bill be now read a Second Time."
An explanatory memorandum has been circulated for the information of Deputies.
The purpose of this Bill is to confirm nine orders made during 1971, under the Imposition of Duties Act, 1957, and the Finance Act, 1962. It is a statutory requirement that such orders must be confirmed not later than the end of the calendar year following that in which they are made, if they are not to cease to have statutory effect.
The first of these orders, No. 189, was made by the Government on the representations of the Minister for Finance. Deputies will be familiar with this type of order. The Anglo-Irish Free Trade Area Agreement provides that on 1st July each year duties against UK goods are to be reduced by 10 per cent. These reductions are effected by an annual order and the order now brought before the House for approval provided for the sixth tariff reduction of 10 per cent on these goods and for the sixth reduction of 10 per cent in the protective elements in revenue duties on certain United Kingdom goods. This order also provided for the elimination in one step of the protective element in other revenue duties on goods of United Kingdom origin. Examples of this are the duties on newspapers, periodicals and hydrocarbon oils. It will be recalled that special arrangements were made in respect of certain goods of Northern Ireland origin under which a somewhat accelerated rate of reduction of duties was provided for involving a preference in favour of these goods vis-à-vis UK goods. The order provides for the maintenance of this preference. In addition, the order provided for a reduction in the import duty on unassembled motor cycles as a concession to domestic motor cycle assemblers and for a number of changes in the customs tariff necessitated principally by amendments in the Brussels tariff nomenclature.
Representations were made to me by the Irish manufacturers that the protection afforded by the specific duty on sweets and toffee, at the time amounting to 6p per lb, Full; 4p per lb, Preferential, and 2p per lb, Special Preferential, UK and Northern Ireland, had been eroded due to increased prices. It seemed that the case was well founded—increasing imports posed a serious threat to the industry. Accordingly, Order No. 190 was made which provided for increases of 2p per lb in the specific rates of duty and for imposition of an alternative ad valorem duty of 40 per cent on sweets and toffee from all sources.
It will be recalled that Article I (5) of the Anglo-Irish Free Trade Area Agreement provided for a review by the Irish Government in the year commencing 1st July, 1970, to ascertain whether an appreciable rise in unemployment had occurred in any sector of industry or region, or was threatened as a result of the reduction of protection under the agreement. If the Government were satisfied that difficulties of this nature had occurred or were threatened, then the Irish and British Governments had to consider jointly whether the difficulties could be dealt with by altering the arrangements for the removal of protection up to 1975, or by extending the transitional period beyond that time. Article I (5) further provided that, if the Irish Government, following the consultations, concluded that the difficulties were so exceptional that they could not be dealt with in this way, they could then exclude a limited number of the goods concerned from the free trade arrangements. Consultations between the Governments were not concluded by 1st July, 1971 and the Governments agreed that pending the completion of the consultations, the tariff reductions due to take place on that date should not be made in respect of certain iron and steel products, certain agricultural machinery, certain domestic electrical appliances, aluminium hollowware, blankets, mobile homes, joinery and leather footwear and should be at a rate lower than 10 per cent in respect of furniture, ropes and cordage and brushes and brooms. Order No. 191 gave effect to this agreement between the Governments.
In the course of the changeover to the Brussels nomenclature from the form in use before 1963, some of the changes resulted in the loss of protection—inadvertently—for certain goods. This occurred, perhaps, because of changes in description or definition. Most of these have already been put right as they came to light. Order No. 192 provided for the imposition of customs duties on certain metal badges and footwear heels which had inadvertently incurred a loss of protection on the change-over to the Brussels nomenclature form of customs tariff.
Order No. 193 increased the minimum specific duty from £3 to £15 on tyres of non-UK origin and of minimum dimensions 7.00 inches x 16 inches. The order was made following representations from the Irish tyre manufacturing industry seeking increased protection of the truck tyre market from increasing imports of large tyres from State-trading and Far Eastern countries.
Order No. 194 was made by the Government on the recommendation of the Minister for Finance. The order provided for a considerable number of technical changes in the customs tariff necessitated by changes in the Brussels tariff nomenclature and for a number of other minor editorial changes in the tariff. The Customs Co-operation Council meets in Brussels periodically to review the classification of goods in the Brussels tariff nomenclature and to ascertain if technological advances in certain areas necessitate the reclassification of some goods in different headings of the Brussels tariff nomenclature. When the council recommends changes in classification, individual countries often find that new national sub-divisions must be raised in the tariff in order to maintain the existing rates of duty for the goods involved. An example of the type of operation involved in Order No. 194 is concerned with mixtures of chemicals and foodstuffs of the kind used in the preparation of human foodstuffs. These items were previously classified under tariff heading 38.19 as chemical products or preparations and were free of duty in the Irish tariff. The Council ruled that they should be reclassified at tariff heading 21.07 as food preparations. A new sub-heading had, therefore to be raised at tariff heading 21.07 of the Irish tariff to provide for the retention of the free rates of duty for these goods.
Order No. 195 implemented Ireland's participation in a scheme of tariff preferences in favour of developing countries following a resolution adopted unanimously by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development in regard to the grant of such preferences. The tariff preferences extended by Ireland consist of reductions of 33? per cent below the full rate in the customs duties on certain industrial products originating in developing countries. The reductions do not apply to certain sensitive products, mainly textiles and footwear.
Order No. 196 was made by the Government on the recommendation of the Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries. The order gave effect to the measures agreed with the EEC for imposition of new and amended duties on fish, rye grass seed, tomatoes and apples. The quantitive controls which we operate on imports of these commodities will be abolished following accession to the EEC and in order to allow for more gradual exposure of Irish producers to full EEC conditions it was agreed that special arrangements could be made to strengthen our duty protection.
The nature of the textile industry is such that it is more subject to ups and downs than most other industries. Recessionary trends which had continued to create problems for the industry on a world-wide scale throughout 1970 showed little signs of a recovery during the year 1971. This situation presented its own particular difficulties for the Irish textile industry, as customs duties were being phased out against British goods in accordance with the provisions of the Anglo-Irish Free Trade Area Agreement. I became satisfied that, if we were to enter into another year of increased opportunities of access to our markets from British manufacturers, serious redundancy would occur in the Irish textile industry. Following consultations between the Irish and British Governments, the Irish Government decided to exclude certain outerwear from free trade under the provisions of article 1 (5) of the agreement—to which I have referred earlier—and to increase the duties on such outerwear of United Kingdom origin from 1st January, 1972, from the rates then in operation, ranging from 9.6 per cent to 16 per cent, to the levels which were in force in 1969-70. These rates ranged from 16 per cent to 24 per cent. Order No. 197 gave effect to the Government's decision.
I shall be glad to give any further information required in connection with the Bill.