§ Mr. FlynnTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what new proposals he has to protect and promote British intellectual property. [156075]
§ Dr. Howells [holding answer 29 March 2001]Protection for British intellectual property (IP) is central to our objectives for European and international activities in this area. Towards the end of last year the European Commission adopted an Action Plan on Counterfeiting and Piracy. This promises a Directive aimed at strengthening enforcement of intellectual property rights790W across the Community through harmonisation of legislation and procedures, and establishing a general framework for co-operation between member states. The Action Plan is in line with work, especially on promoting co-operation between enforcement bodies, which we have already begun here. Internationally we are working closely with our European partners to ensure that IP rights and their enforcement are available to British industry in all members of the World Trade Organisation, especially in our major trading partners, through full implementation of the Trade Related aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPs). Where British interests are disadvantaged by failure to provide the required standards of IP protection we continue to use internationally recognised WTO disputes resolution arrangements.
We are also strengthening measures to protect IP in the United Kingdom. For example, the Government are supporting a private Member's Bill (The Copyright etc. and Trade Marks (Offences and Enforcement) Bill) currently before Parliament that will bring into line criminal provisions in copyright with those in trade marks law, and so make enforcement actions more effective.
Promoting IP and its value to us all is a key task. The Patent Office continues to undertake events and workshops aimed at promoting IP, raising awareness in general and in particular communities such as small businesses and business intermediaries. The aim is to create understanding and respect for IP throughout the society and the community. For example last November a new portal website for IP (www.intellectual-property.gov.uk) was launched that provides information for both creators and users of IP and provides links to many other useful sites. The Patent Office's own recently improved website (www.patent.gov.uk) has won an award in the Government Website Awards announced last week. We have also undertaken research into people's understanding of IP to identify the right messages to improve awareness and are exploring how to improve education about IP in both schools and higher education.