Q
Prime Minister, if the nine are saying there can be no more negotiations on fish but the danes appear to be insisting on some further concessions, how can there possibly be a settlement on this by the end of the year?
A
Look, I think they have been going on trying to get one concession after another. It has been a difficult negotiation for us all. The nine have decided no more concessions. We stood pat on that for a couple of days and we continue to stand pat on that. There are no more concessions. We are here to make that clear once again. Now it's a new situation for the danes. That's the end of negotiations on concessions. The end, and there it is. Whatever happens they either have to decide whether to agree or whether to watch the nine take national measures … . against the danes. That's the choice they now have to face. It is not a choice … .
Q
What sort of things could be discussed at the meeting on 21 December?
A
They just have to decide whether they see a concession or not. They say they want further clarification if we want to clarify. We can't concede anything. Not one fish.
Q
The Community is very pessimistic about the European economy. This was discussed a great deal. Is the pessimism much greater than it has been previously?
A
Obviously we are concerned that the world recession is deeper and longer than we had anticipated. There has been one new factor to emerge since the last meeting and that was the very serious financial position of a number of Latin American countries added to those in the Soviet bloc. Now as you know that means a world financial position in which countries have borrowed far more than they could afford to borrow and they are in difficulties in meeting interest let alone repaying the capital. To some extent the fact that they borrowed helped us through the last world recession. The fact that they can't go on and they have to be helped with their interest payments deepens this one. So that's a new factor, and of course therefore we are doubly concerned as to how we are going to come out of it, and as you know we agreed that we must follow prudent financial policies and we really must make strenuous efforts yet again to try to find jobs and training for some of our young people, and the communique reflects that. [end p1]
Q
But what can the Community do to find more jobs
A
First you can run your financial policy in a sound way above all by trying to get interest rates down. Now you know what's happened when we have tried to get interest rates down. Some other countries have put theirs up which in fact has thrown back our recovery. That happened to us. [words missing] which is inventive, which is used to taking the initiative, if money can be borrowed at reasonable interest rates, there are all sorts of small businesses that would start to grow up. The construction industry would be able to start again in areas where [words missing] to expand where it has been quiescent. So it is absolutely vital to get the interest rates down and then we simply must have strenuous policies to get into some of the new technology. We know full well that the country that has got into most of the technology ahead of most of us is [word missing] we have got to get into it, and we've just finished. Information technology here in Britain and we are having a large number of training courses to train young people to use these things. It is not only making these things, it is using them.
Q
On the question of trade is the Community heading for freer trade within the Community and greater protection against countries [Like?] latin Americas?
A
We certainly are having a very great effort to get rid of some of the barriers of trade within the Community. There are not tariff barriers within the Community as you know but there are all sorts of stringencies which you can have which in fact stop the free movement of goods and in services and things like insurance, in which we are particularly good, we can't go and sell insurance policies freely within the Community because we haven't [words missing] up trade in insurance yet and that must be done so we're having a very great effort on that front. We are also very concerned about trade with japan. As you know I am especially concerned. It has been difficult for the Community to negotiate as one because some countries have special arrangements with japan and that means that they don't suffer as the rest of us do from japan, the kind of import penetration we've had. Now the Community is making an effort to have a look at these things and negotiate on our behalf and we each of us are having voluntary restraint and agreements with Japan where the penetration is too great. There is another way of course and there is a great advantage in this respect in a Common Market to say to Japan ‘look if you're going to send this money and goods into our country, you'd better set up a factory here and produce them here because, then we'll get the jobs here and there will not be so much trouble’. [end p2]
Q
What about the change of leadership in Russia? Was this meeting not a chance to make some sign of friendly relations towards the Russians?
A
We carry on with our policy towards Russia. It is a policy on which we have always been prepared to talk. I don't think that even if we get out our crystal balls and look into them we will be able to see very much. We'v just got to wait and see how things go. We've always been prepared to respond to any practical signs. As you know we have a large number of disarmament talks and we are very keen particularly in the West—I think the free societies usually are—to keep our security at a lower level of expenditure. But that means that they've got to bring their armaments down too. So we agree on disarmament and we reduce together. There are many many talks on which we want to make progress and there are signs that they want to make progress too. And if they did, for example, we could get rid of one whole class of nuclear weapons: all their SS20s. So I think it is for them to show the signs. When they do they'll find us very ready with a swift response.
Q
What about the probable lifting of the martial law in Poland? Did the meeting discuss this and was it felt that some sort of gesture should be made towards Poland to welcome this?
A
Obviously we hope that martial law will be lifted and those who are detained will be freed. We note that already the Polish government is taking steps to crush Solidarity and in crushing that has crushed the first flame of freedom of free trade unionism. I doubt whether they will reverse that. But we will wait and see what happens—whether they lift martial law—and see what the appropriate response will be. We have re-scheduled debts, as you know. We have continued to give humanitiarian aid to the Polish people, because we are very concerned about them, especially in the deep winter and when they are short of food.