This week, UK trade secretary Kemi Badenoch is in India for trade talks – and billions of people’s access to medicines is at stake.
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Hi John,
This week, UK trade secretary Kemi Badenoch is in India for trade talks – and billions of people’s access to medicines is at stake.
The UK wants to impose new, destructive intellectual property (IP) laws on India which would badly damage India’s generic drug industry. The UK is demanding:
1. The scrapping of measures that allow citizens block unjustified drug patents before they are granted;
2. Extending patent monopolies beyond the already lengthy 20-year period; and
3. Greenlighting patents on minor changes to known medications.
These proposals look like a wish list from the pharmaceutical lobby, designed to help shore up their drug monopolies and allow them to charge eye-watering prices for medications. These measures would be a disaster, especially for the lower income countries that depend on Indian generics to access life-saving drugs.
Can you urge the UK government to withdraw its dangerous intellectual property demands?
Email the trade secretary now ([link removed])
India also supplies the NHS with 25 per cent of all generic medication – dramatically reducing NHS costs. However, the measures demanded by the UK threaten to delay the availability of lower-priced generic alternatives to medicines, which could help big pharma extract even greater profits from our health service.
The threat to many countries in the global south is even greater, with some countries depending on Indian exports for the majority of their medicines. Indian generics have been responsible for bringing the price down on many key drugs helping countries in the global south to afford generic medication for illnesses such as cancer, HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis – saving millions of lives globally. We must resist any move to threaten this vital industry.
Take action now ([link removed])
The UK’s demands are only beneficial to one group, and one group only: the pharmaceutical industry. That’s why we’re working with doctors, patients and campaigners from around the world to resist these grubby measures at every step. Please take action now to stand up for affordable access to medicine.
Thank you for your support.
In solidarity,
Hareem Ghani
Campaigner at Global Justice Now
Notes
1. Badenoch hits back at claims India-UK trade deal could hike prices for NHS after agreement is leaked ([link removed]) , City A.M., 5 November 2022
2. A UK-India trade deal is vital, but it must not undermine crucial safeguards ([link removed]) , Labour List, 22 December 2022
3. Big drug firms accused of ‘ripping off’ NHS with £12bn excess profits ([link removed]) , The i paper, 12 July 2023
4. Bitter Pills: Why the NHS can’t swallow big pharma’s profiteering, ([link removed]) Global Justice Now, Just Treatment and STOP AIDS, 12 July 2023
5. UK trade proposals will be ‘catastrophic’ for patients globally, campaigners warn ([link removed]) , Global Justice Now, 7 August 2023
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