I move:—
That Seanad Eireann hereby approves of the Control of Imports (Amendment of Quota No. 45 and Revocation of Quota No. 46) Order, 1952.
Control of Imports (Amendment of Quota No. 45 and Revocation of Quota No. 46) Order, 1952—Approval Motion.
As the House is aware, Orders made under the control of Imports Act have to be approved of by Resolution in each House of the Oireachtas within eight months. The Order to which this motion refers amended one quota Order and revoked another relating to cotton piece goods. In 1949, four quota Orders were made for the regulation of the import of cotton piece goods. These Orders followed on and implemented arrangements which had been made previously between cotton-weaving interests in this country and interests in Great Britain. The effect was to confine the Irish market to the Irish weavers in respect of classes of cotton piece goods which they were then manufacturing, and secure the balance of the market for the British weavers.
Quota Order No. 46 applied only to classes of cotton piece goods which were not then made in the country and was brought into force for the sole purpose of providing for preferential treatment in respect of imports from Great Britain. As the House will see from the motion, Quota Order No. 46 has been revoked and that Order was, of course, unnecessary for the purpose of protecting the cotton industry in this country. It imposed an obligation to import supplies of cotton cloths from Britain, even though they might have been purchased more advantageously elsewhere.
That form of preferential treatment for imports under quota restrictions is contrary to the principles governing international trade which were laid down subsequently by the O.E.E.C., to which this country has subscribed. That preferential treatment for British cotton imports into this country under the arrangements made was disapproved strongly by the British Board of Trade, and it was decided to revoke the Order. The effect was to free from quantitative regulations imports of the cotton goods to which we have referred.
Consideration was given also to the extent to which the cotton-weaving industry had developed in this country, and it was decided to amend Quota Order No. 45 so as to include within its scope cloths which had been previously caught under the No. 46 Order, but in respect of which it was decided to include a restriction on imports. Quota Order No. 45 applied only to cloths over three ounces per square yard in weight and over 37 inches in width; that is to say, 37 inches in width when the cloths had a woven pattern, and, as cloths less than three ounces in weight and woven-pattern cloths under 37 inches in width are being made here, they are being brought under the scope of Quota Order No. 45.
The position now is that, while the quota Order has been extended to include these classes of cloths, manufacture of which commenced after 1949, other cloths which are not being manufactured here at all have been freed from import restrictions.
Question put and agreed to.