§ Mr. BakerTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent discussions she has had with developing countries in respect of the Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights Agreement; and if she will make a statement. [127464]
§ Mr. FoulkesThe WTO TRIPS Council is currently conducting its review of the implementation of TRIPS legislation for 13 of its developing country members. The Government will be following this review closely.
The Government are well aware that the TRIPS Agreement has been difficult for some countries to implement and that questions have been raised about its coverage and approach.
The Government stand ready to offer assistance to developing countries on understanding the implication of the Agreement for themselves and its implementation.
Our Department is actively funding programmes aimed at helping developing countries to better their Uruguay Round commitment including in the area of intellectual property rights.
The Government's position is to maintain an agreement on TRIPS. The Government are open to constructive suggestions on how to improve the TRIPS Agreement and as part of a new comprehensive round would be open to substantive negotiations on the Agreement.