Anger over quota restrictions on clothing industry

“Fashion suppliers are under increasing pressure as their product, which is seasonal and has a short shelf-life, is piling up in Irish and European ports,” Mr Hannon, who is a director with IBEC’s Irish Clothing and Textile Alliance, said.

“If not resolved quickly, the dispute will reduce the choice of garments available to shoppers this winter and could lead to higher prices.

“If companies cannot get hold of the products which they have already paid for but which remain blocked, they will be forced to offset these losses through higher prices.”

The latest quotas for the import of Chinese textiles to Europe were agreed in the China-EU textiles agreement signed in June.

However, Mr Hannon said this had resulted in the entire 2005 textiles quota for a number of different categories being reached within a number of weeks.

The EU has found shipments from China have exceeded agreed quotas, resulting in stockpiles of imported clothing from China being left sitting in warehouses in Europe.

Mr Hannon said companies working to plan next season’s ranges were mired in uncertainty over whether they can source their collections from Chinese suppliers.

“Little regard for the nature of the fashion industry was paid when negotiating the quota deal with China.

"Lead times for fashion collections are typically around 12 months, therefore Irish companies entered into supply contracts for current stock as early as January and February of this year,” Mr Hannon said.

“Once in the middle of a fashion selling cycle, it is practically impossible for an Irish company to switch to a supplier from a different country as the company is effectively locked into the deal at the sample ordering stage.”

The director urged the European Textiles 133 Committee, which is to travel to Beijing to negotiate the quotas, to act swiftly to resolve the issue.