7

(8) Early in the Committee's work a Chairman's Committee, consisting of the Heads of Delegations was established to guide the work of the Session. This Committee met regularly throughout the Session. The Chairman's Committee decided that as Delegations were committed to tariff negotiations during the first few weeks of the Session, the general discussions on the Charter would not begin until several weeks after the opening of the Session. This procedure was followed. (9) In order to discuss certain technical Articles of the draft Charter (Articles 32 to 39, and Article 43) which had been drafted by the Drafting Committee in New York, the Executive Committee sat early in May and set up a Working Party to review these Articles and to accord them the same status as the remaining Articles of the draft Charter which had been adopted during the First Session. This Working Party, which established ad hoc sub-committees on particular Articles, held eleven meetings and was then formally wound up, its recommendations on the various Articles referred to it being reported to Commission A of the Executive Committee, referred to later in paragraph 11. Early in the Session the Executive Committee held a series of discussions on Chapter II (Employment and Economic Activity), and on Article 16 of Chapter IV (General Most-favoured-nation Treatment). The Committee established a sub-committee to deal with amendments to Chapter 11, but as Commissions A and B of the Executive Committee were set up before it completed its work this sub-committee, like the Working Party on the Technical Articles, reported to Commission A. (10) The Chairman's Committee, after a few meetings established a Charter Steering Committee consisting of representatives of the following delegations : Australia, China, Cuba, France, United Kingdom, and United States of America. This Committee prepared a programme for the Charter discussions which was adopted by the Executive Committee and which provided for the establishment of two Commissions, A and B, on each of which all Delegations were represented. Commission A, in addition to dealing with the Reports of the Working Party on the Technical Articles and the sub-committee on Chapter 11, referred to in the preceding paragraph, dealt with Chapter 111 (Economic Development), and Chapter IV (Commercial Policy). Commission B dealt with Chapters I (Purpose and Objectives), V (Restrictive Business Practices), VI (Inter-governmental Commodity Agreements), VII (the International Trade Organization), VIII (Settlement of Differences — Interpretation), and IX (General Provisions). The Chairman of the Preparatory Committee (H.E. M. Max Suetens —Belgium) was made Chairman of Commission A, and one of the Vice-Chairmen (the Hon. L. D. Wilgress —Canada) was made Chairman of Commission B. (11) The procedure adopted in the Commissions was to have a general discussion on particular Chapters and Articles in the course of which delegates referred to and explained particular amendments which they