NEW DELHI: The India-UK trade agreement does not compromise with India’s ability to regulate pharmaceutical pricing or production under public interest, the government has clarified.
The commerce ministry in a note issued on Tuesday said that the FTA allows measures necessary to protect public health, nutrition, and national interest. “The FTA ensures that India’s right to regulate and intervene in the pharmaceutical sector for access and affordability is fully retained,” reiterated the ministry.
It said in a note that the FTA reaffirms India’s right to fully use TRIPS (trade related intellectual property rights) flexibilities, including compulsory licensing and parallel imports. “It explicitly upholds the Doha Declaration on TRIPS and Public Health, ensuring continued access to affordable medicines, says the ministry.
The ministry has informed that India retains full sovereign authority to issue compulsory licences to address public health emergencies, unaffordable pricing, or unmet needs. Under compulsory licensing, the government can allow others to use patented inventions without the patent holders consent, especially when such use is related to public health.
The government has clarified that the India-UK trade pact has no clause that restricts India’s use of compulsory licensing in any form.
“While voluntary licensing is acknowledged under the pact as a tool for access and collaboration, it is not a precondition for compulsory licensing,” says the government.
The FTA, according to the ministry, allows measures necessary to protect public health, nutrition, and national interest. “The FTA ensures that India’s right to regulate and intervene in the pharmaceutical sector for access and affordability is fully retained,” the ministry of commerce has said.
It further said that India continues to be recognized globally for its public health-oriented IP regime. It says that the FTA does not impose any TRIPS-plus obligations that restrict exports of generics, nor does it change existing provisions on parallel importation, Bolar exemption, or government use of patents.