Intellectual Property (Exhaustion of Rights) (EU Exit) Regulations 2018

Baroness Corston Excerpts

Monday 14th January 2019 Grand Committee

[Baroness Corston (Lab)]

The noble Lord said that he will apologise; when will that happen?

[Lord Henley]

The noble Baroness and noble Lords opposite are having fun. I will continue.

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[Lord Henley]

My Lords, I will deal with consultation when I wind up this debate after the noble Baroness and others have spoken.

[Baroness Corston]

Paragraph 10.1 of the Explanatory Memorandum says:

“No formal consultation has been carried”.

[Lord Henley]

My Lords, there has been no formal consultation. Obviously, there have been informal discussions, as officials always have, but there has been no formal consultation by me and other Ministers. The Intellectual Property Office—

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[Lord Henley]

I cannot give a precise figure for those costs. My belief is that they are generally relatively minor, but I will write to the noble Lord with the details.

Beneficiaries include the NHS, which will continue to have the ability to maintain security and diversity of supply of medicines from the EEA, and to source medicines at the best price from within the EEA without being restricted by IP rights. As I mentioned, and as set out in the technical measures published in September last year, this fix is planned to be a temporary measure. The Government are considering options for what exhaustion regime is best for the UK in future while extensive research is under way. I stress that such an important decision should not be rushed. We will ensure that we have a robust evidence base and that full consultation with stakeholders is completed before any decision is made.

The instrument is extremely important to support the movement of goods and the supply of essential commodities such as medicines. It provides—

[Baroness Corston]

My Lords—

[Lord Henley]

I am going to conclude this section and then the noble Baroness may intervene. It provides clarity and legal certainty for businesses and consumers by preserving the status quo as much as possible following our exit from the EU. It is a necessary and technical fix for UK laws to prepare for our exit from the EU. I give way to the noble Baroness.

[Baroness Corston]

I am grateful. The Minister has just referred to consultation. Paragraph 10.1 of the Explanatory Notes merely says:

“The Intellectual Property Office has undertaken information gathering with stakeholders”—


we do not know who they are—and that:

“No formal consultation has been carried”.


Why has it not been done before?

[Lord Henley]

Because there are other matters that will be more important, such as getting the consultation right on what happens should there be a deal. These are no-deal regulations and we want to get them right in the event of no deal. Obviously, we will consult as the noble Baroness wishes as we seek to get the deal right in due course. I hope I have dealt with those questions and I commend the regulation to the Committee.