Day 055 - 25 Nov 94 - Page 27
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2 MS. STEEL: Can we read it first?
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4 MR. JUSTICE BELL: You read it first, and then hand it to
5 Mr. Rampton. (Handed)
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7 MR. MORRIS: Which part would you like to refer the court to?
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9 MR. JUSTICE BELL: You had better identify the document first.
10 A. Yes. It is a letter from Frank Willis of the
11 Independent Television Commission to myself at the National
12 Food Alliance.
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14 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Dated?
15 A. 11th October, 1994. I wanted to read out one sentence
16 which says: "You will see that on both subjects", that is
17 the subject of food and slimming advertising, "we are
18 proposing a number of code amendments on lines similar to
19 some of the suggestions which were put to us earlier in the
20 year." I wanted to ----
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22 MR. MORRIS: Is that your suggestions or just general
23 suggestions?
24 A. No, no. This letter is acknowledging that the ITC is
25 taking on board and is making proposals similar to some of
26 the suggestions which the National Food Alliance put to the
27 ITC earlier in the year.
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29 MR. RAMPTON: My Lord, so as to avoid my having to come back to
30 that particular letter -- which I want to avoid, if I can
31 -- may I suggest simply that your Lordship reads the whole
32 thing?
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34 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Yes.
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36 MR. MORRIS: Yes. There was a part I would like to refer to,
37 as well.
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39 MR. JUSTICE BELL: I will read it all. Perhaps someone could
40 make some copies, and I will put it with the 10th October
41 letter.
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43 MR. MORRIS: Yes. I have for the first time read it just now
44 very quickly, but I believe somewhere two-thirds of the way
45 through there was a recognition that some of the amendments
46 that were not accepted by the NFA were not accepted
47 because -- sorry, were not opposed; it was just that it was
48 not felt that this review was the appropriate time to
49 consider them -- is that correct -- in this letter?
50 A. Yes; and, in fact, in the letter that you do you have a
51 copy of, on the second page, this is referring to the same
52 situation, a recognition that a research programme is
53 underway and that the ITC intends to review its policy in
54 this area once the government's research programme has been
55 completed. So, yes, the ITC has not closed the door.
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57 MR. MORRIS: This is the research programme regarding the
58 effects of advertising, is it, or just nutrition research?
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60 MR. JUSTICE BELL: What Mr. Willis referred to was the effect of