Generics Advocates Blast UK Patent Proposals in UK-India Trade Deal

A letter sent to the United Kingdom’s International Business and Trade Secretary today urged scrapping proposals that health groups say would undermine the generic medicines industry in India.

The letter refers to a leaked document that indicates the UK will be asking India to agree to a number of patent provisions as the two countries negotiate a trade deal today.

More than 120 health and development organizations from low and middle-income countries signed the letter and urged the Secretary, as well as the Foreign Secretary, the Minister for International Trade, and the Minister of State for Development and Africa “to change course and drop the UK’s demands for stricter intellectual property provisions as part of any trade deal with India.” A similar letter was sent to the Secretary last November.

The health groups singled out the following provisions of the leaked document in particular: a requirement for patent term extension; a data exclusivity term of six years; eligibility for new patents covering a “a new medical use for a known substance or composition”; and the removal of “pre-grant patent oppositions” in India.

The letter referred to these proposals as “sweeping changes” that “could threaten the supply of generic medicines to low and middle-income countries.” The patient advocate groups also slammed the UK’s lack of support for the waiver of IP rights on COVID-19 vaccine technology under the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS). “Attacking India’s generics industry would be yet another act of global health vandalism, which could leave the UK’s international reputation in tatters and undermine the UK’s international development strategies.”

According to a People’s Vaccine Alliance press release issued with the letter, “India is the world’s largest producer of generic drugs, providing 20% of the world’s generic medicine supply, including 80% of antiretrovirals used globally to treat AIDS.” Additionally, the release says, four out of five drugs used in the UK’ National Health Service (NHS) are generics, and one-third of those (25% of the total) are produced in India.

“We urge you not to sabotage your own mission,” wrote the advocacy groups.

Last year, the UK Trade Secretary, Kemi Badenoch, pushed back on similar criticism following the leaked document, telling City A.M. that “the UK would never agree any measures that would increase costs for the NHS.”

The two countries are scheduled to possibly announce a finalized trade agreement during the G20 summit September 9-10.