The export control system in the United Kingdom is similar to but
not identical with that of the United States. It is administered by
the Board of Trade. Although the present system grew out of measures
originally promulgated at the start of World War II, its primary
purpose now is the safeguarding of the country's requirements of
strategic and short-supply goods, and the restriction of the flow of
such items to undesirable destinations. The United Kingdom security
trade control program was instituted in 1947.
The United Kingdom export control mechanism operates in the following
manner:
The consolidated order, which encompasses all the items subject to
control, is a published document and revisions are issued in the
form of statutory orders which are also published in the Board of
Trade Journal (an official weekly). The list is arranged into three
schedules. The first schedule lists goods which, in general, cannot
be exported to any destination without a license. The second schedule
lists additional goods (mostly foodstuffs) which, in general, can be
exported to any destination without a license. The two schedules are,
however, subject to two qualifications. Firstly, a limited number of
goods included in the first schedule can be exported without license
to destinations within the British Commonwealth (except Hong Kong),
Ireland, and the United States. Such goods are listed in the third
schedule. Secondly, no goods, even those included on the second
schedule, can be exported without license to China, Hong Kong, Macao,
or Tibet.
The extent of the restriction on individual items is reflected in the
administration of the control. Strict control is maintained over items
which are prohibited exportation to certain areas, as, for instance,
aircraft, firearms, ammunition, atomic materials. The exportation of
a wide range of goods of strategic importance, including rubber, to
Communist China is prohibited, as is the exportation to the Soviet
bloc in Europe of a somewhat narrower range of commodities. The export
to the Soviet bloc of many other items is subject to limitations as
to quantities permitted to be shipped. In addition, there is the
great bulk of items on which control is achieved through case-by-case
scrutiny of individual license applications.