London, 15 June 1967
Confidential
Common Market
Mr Holt said that he would like to spend a few minutes at the outset in relation to Britain’s entry into the EEC. He had a provisional arrangement to meet Mr Jay but a few minutes with the Prime Minister would make it unnecessary to proceed with the Jay meeting.
The one point he wanted to explain, to put it in a somewhat political context, was that it was not possible for Australia, at this stage at least, to identify ‘essential’ export interests. The fact is that they must all be regarded as essential and we are not able to indicate that any particular industry is expendable. He referred to individual communities for instance the dried fruit industry of Mildura which has an export not relatively large in money terms but which depends for its community existence on the export of its product.
Mr Wilson recommended that this line of approach by Australia was of course, understandable and the problem involved for Australia was not unlike that which the United Kingdom itself had. It would, therefore, allow the Australian Government to take the attitude that it had been Britain which was to blame for any shortcomings in safeguards. To this Mr Holt said that this was not necessarily the case at all.
We recognised that Britain itself would in the end suffer in some of its industries and we and other countries may be in the same boat, but this did not alter the necessities of our situation, which was to represent all export interests as essential. Mr Wilson said that he saw the point.
Mr Holt mentioned that the sugar industry was another particular example for Australia and that as he understood it a meeting at ministerial level was about to take place in London on Sugar. Australia would be represented at this by Mr Sinclair,1 who assists the Minister for Trade & Industry and in the latter’s absence acts for him.
Mr Wilson indicated that he knew of the Sugar Meeting and was glad to note Mr Sinclair’s attendance. Mr Holt mentioned that Mr Sinclair would, however, probably be briefed only in relation to Sugar at this stage and that if it were a question of discussion of a wider range of industries it would be a question of bringing the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade & Industry, Mr McEwen personally into the matter.
The discussion then moved at Mr Holt’s insistence to a consideration of what he would say publicly to the Australian press. He suggested (and it was agreed) that he mention that he had a discussion with Mr Wilson in general terms and that he had pointed out to Mr Wilson the problems of each and all Australian industries.
Mr Wilson concurred in comment on these lines. The discussion then moved to other matters.
1 lan Sinclair, Minister for Social Services in the Menzies and Holt governments.
[NAA: A1838, 727/4/2 PART 7]