PART 9Suspension of a country from the GSP or suspension or variation of GSP rates

Further conditions for GSPI1I221

1

Subject to paragraph (3), paragraph (2) sets out circumstances in which the Secretary of State may publish a —

a

suspension notice to—

i

suspend a qualifying GSP country from the GSP; or

ii

suspend the GSP rate on specified GSP goods originating from a qualifying GSP country; or

b

variation notice to vary the GSP rate on specified goods originating from a specified country.

2

The circumstances are that a qualifying GSP country—

a

has engaged or is engaging in serious and systematic violations of the human rights and labour rights contained in conventions specified in Part 1 of Schedule 2;

b

is engaging in unfair trading practices, after a determination by a competent WTO body that those practices are prohibited or actionable under the WTO Agreement;

c

is engaging in export of goods made by prison labour;

d

has serious shortcomings in its customs controls on the export or transit of the substances controlled under—

i

the UN Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs (1961) as amended by the 1972 Protocol M1;

ii

the UN Convention on Psychotropic Substances (1971) M2; or

iii

the UN Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (1988) M3;

e

has engaged or is engaging in serious and systematic violations of the principles of international conventions on anti-terrorism and money laundering to which the United Kingdom is a party;

f

is seriously and systematically infringing the requirements imposed by regional fishery management organisations or international arrangements to which the United Kingdom is a party, concerning the conservation and management of fishery resources; or

g

is seriously and systematically failing to comply with the conditions specified in a customs cooperation notice.

3

The Secretary of State must follow the warning and assessment procedure specified in and provided for by regulation 26, before publishing a notice under paragraph (1).

4

In these Regulations—

  • “WTO body” means a body established under the WTO Agreement; and

  • “WTO Agreement” means the Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization, signed at Marrakesh on 15th April 1994 M4.