Irish politicians across political spectrum call on EU to support TRIPS Waiver

• Over 300 MEPs and MPs Join Chorus of Voices Calling for a TRIPS Waiver at the WTO
• TRIPS waiver - powerful and effective way governments can demonstrate commitment to global cooperation

Ahead of the next TRIPS Council meeting at the WTO this Friday, Irish politicians from nearly every political party, including Independents and Senators, have signed a joint appeal, alongside hundreds of MEPs and members of national Parliaments across the EU, expressing their unequivocal support for the TRIPS waiver.

Their call joins 175 Nobel laureates and former Heads of State and Governments, the Director General of the World Health Organization (WHO), scientists, trade unions, NGOs and the general public as the European Commission and Member States, including Ireland, continue to oppose the patent waiver, which would help increase global production and availability of Covid-19 vaccines and related equipment globally.

Closer to home, organisations campaigning for a People’s Vaccine have sent letters to the Committee on EU Affairs and the Committee on Enterprise, Trade and Employment asking them to review Ireland’s support of the EU’s opposition to the TRIPS waiver. A letter will also be sent to Minister Coveney this week to ask the Irish Government to implement the recommendations of the report of the Joint Committee of Foreign Affairs and Defence on the distribution of Covid-19 vaccines to developing countries. 

Jim Clarken, Chief Executive of Oxfam Ireland said: “Momentum behind the call for support of the TRIPS waiver is growing significantly. It is fantastic to see so many of our own politicians now publicly adding their names in support of this life saving measure that could move us towards vaccine equity.

“Just last week, in response to queries from Senator Alice-Mary Higgins, Deputy Robert Troy, Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, said that there is ‘an important opportunity for Ireland to be a leader in ensuring the safe and equitable distribution of vaccines to all’.

“And he is correct. Supporting the TRIPS waiver would be among the most powerful and effective available ways for governments to demonstrate their commitment to global cooperation and increase global access to vaccines.

“We call on Ireland to end its opposition to the TRIPS waiver and work to persuade their EU colleagues to support this proposal from over 100 countries at the WTO meeting this Friday.

"Reports from India this week indicate that they are losing one life every four minutes as the country grapples under a new wave of the virus. These are the types of headlines we can avoid moving forward – but only if there is a united response to ending the pandemic. 

“If the situation remains unchanged, the interests and profits of the few will determine the fate of the many.

“It is not too late for Ireland, or the European Commission and EU governments, to change course and finally listen to leading experts, elected representatives and the people who hold the most power – their voting public."

END

Contact

Caroline Reid | caroline.reid@oxfam.org

Notes to the Editor

This press release is the result of a coordinated effort led by Health Action International (HAI) and is endorsed by a further group of 24 European and International civil society organisations:

• Irish politicians who signed the appeal: John Brady (SF), Matt Carthy (SF), Joan Collins (IND), Gerard P Craughwell (IND), David Cullinane (SF), Mairéad Farrell (SF), Gary Gannon (SD), Seán Haughey (FF), Alice-Mary Higgins (IND), Neasa Hourigan (GP), Vincent P. Martin (GP), Paul Murphy (PBP), Cian O'Callaghan (SD), Marc Ó Cathasaigh (GP). 
• For supporting quotes from MEPs and endorsing organisations, see here. 
• The joint appeal (signed by 388 MPs and MEPs) can be found here.
• For questions and further information about the joint appeal, please contact Jaume Vidal (jaume@haiweb.org) and Alex Lawrence (alex@haiweb.org) 
   
• In October 2020, South Africa and India submitted a proposal at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) to temporarily waive certain intellectual property (IP) rights under the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) until widespread vaccination is in place globally. Since then, and despite the growing support for the initiative, the discussions have not gone beyond the exchange of clarifications and additional explanations. This is due to the opposition of a handful of countries, most notably the EU and its Member States, the United States, the United Kingdom and Japan, among others. 
• It is evident that there are insufficient vaccine doses because of limited manufacturing capabilities and other challenges to the supply chain. Traditional voluntary mechanisms will not and cannot deliver the scale-up of production and technology transfer needed to respond to this challenge. Initiatives like the COVAX facility depend heavily on pledges and commitments that have yet to materialise, and in any case would be insufficient to provide the level of coverage needed to bring a timely end to the pandemic. As the Director General of the World Health Organisation has said, we face the risk of a “catastrophic moral failure”.