§ Tony WorthingtonTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development if it is her policy that the TRIPS agreement should not impede developing countries from taking measures to protect their public health; and what assessment she has made of the obstacles to achieving this. [16069]
§ Ms HewittI have been asked to reply.
The UK wholeheartedly supports the declaration on the TRIPS agreement and public health issued at the successful conclusion of the fourth ministerial meeting of the WTO at Doha, Qatar. The declaration makes it clear that the TRIPS agreement does not and should not prevent Members from taking measures to protect public health.
I am confident that this agreement will both allow developing countries better access to vital medicines in the fight against diseases like HIV/AIDS and TB, and protect the patent system that promotes research into the drugs of the future.
§ Tony WorthingtonTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development what her policy is on a moratorium on formal WTO disputes over TRIPS. [16071]
§ Ms HewittI have been asked to reply.
In relation to TRIPS and public health the UK wholeheartedly supports the declaration issued at the successful conclusion of the fourth ministerial meeting of the WTO at Doha, Qatar. The declaration makes clear that the TRIPS Agreement does not and should not prevent 495W Members from taking measures to protect public health. It also extends the deadline for implementation of the agreement for the least developed countries, in relation to pharmaceutical products, by 10 years to 2016. Taken together, along with the rest of the declaration, it is clear that there is no need for a formal moratorium.
I have placed a copy of the declaration in the Library of the House.