Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what assessment the Government has made of the implications for its policies of the European Commission communication to the World Trade Organization Council for Trade-related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (IP/C/W/680) on the 4 June 2021.
The United Kingdom is currently assessing the proposal submitted by the European Union to the Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) Council. The Government welcomes alternative proposals for the TRIPS Council’s consideration. It is important to find an effective, balanced, and targeted outcome. The Government will continue to engage in IP discussions and review the merits of any proposal submitted to the TRIPS Council, but the UK must continue to push ahead with pragmatic action now, including voluntary licensing and technology transfer agreements for vaccines, support for Covid-19 Vaccines Global Access, and solutions for production bottlenecks and supply chain issues.