Vaccine Patents Waiver

Lord Lancaster of Kimbolton Excerpts

Monday 24th January 2022 Lords Chamber

[Lord Grimstone of Boscobel (Con)]

My Lords, I am afraid that there is no evidence at all that an IP rights waiver of the kind that the noble Lord suggests would help us to meet his objectives. The reality is that a proposal for a TRIPS waiver would break up the very framework that helped to produce Covid-19 vaccines at an unprecedented pace. That is the key point.

[Lord Lancaster of Kimbolton (Con)]

My Lords—

[Lord Browne of Ladyton (Lab)]

My Lords—

[Noble Lords]

This side!

[Lord Lancaster of Kimbolton (Con)]

Actually, I give way to the noble Lord, Lord Browne, who has been trying to speak for some time.

[Lord Browne of Ladyton (Lab)]

I am very much obliged to the noble Lord. What assessment have the Government made of the establishment in Cape Town by Afrigen Biologics and Vaccines of the first Covid mRNA vaccine technology transfer hub for vaccine production in Africa? It benefits from the fact that Moderna has effectively suspended its patent rights during the pandemic. The European Union, the World Health Organization and numerous countries, prominently France, have funded this project in a Commonwealth country. Have the Government thought about a similar initiative with AstraZeneca, given that 97% of the investment in the AstraZeneca vaccine was from the Government or from philanthropy, not from other investors?