§ Mr. Michael MorrisTo ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he has received representations from the major manufacturers of generic medicines in the United Kingdom seeking United Kingdom Government support for the European Commission's proposed regulation on supplementary protection certificates for medicinal products.
§ Mrs. Virginia BottomleyA number of representations have been received. Some recognise that there should be a realistic effective patent term for new compounds, qualified by the ability to begin development of generic alternatives within patent term to enable their marketing immediately on expiry of the patent. One major manufacturer has opposed the extension entirely.