§ Sir Peter Emeryasked the Minister for Trade whether Her Majesty's Government will oppose any changes in the Paris convention governing patents which would give developing countries the right, under the international convention, to award exclusive compulsory licences under patents allegedly underworked or abused, or which would exclude the patent owner himself from operating the patented invention in that country.
§ Dr. VaughanNegotiations continue on the sanctions which may be applied in cases of underworking or abuse of patents. The text which resulted from last year's session of the conference to revise the Paris convention and which permitted the exclusive compulsory licence as one of the sanctions is to be re-examined at a meeting of the conference next week. Her Majesty's Government are fully aware of industry's views on the matter and indeed its long-term interests are our prime consideration in the negotiations.