Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps he plans to take to support the growth of UK international patent families.

One of the Government’s five missions is to grow the UK economy, including by providing an Intellectual Property (IP) system that encourages investment in creativity and innovation for the benefit of society. The Intellectual Property Office’s strategy sets out how it will shape an IP system that supports UK and global innovation and ensure that intellectual property rights are respected nationally and internationally. Greater confidence in global IP systems will make it worthwhile for UK businesses to patent their inventions internationally.