Protesters call for UK to back covid vaccine waiver
BMJ 2021; 373 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.n1388 (Published 28 May 2021) Cite this as: BMJ 2021;373:n1388
Campaigners demanding an intellectual property waiver on covid-19 vaccines and treatments stage a protest at the Department for International Trade, in London, at the start of the two day virtual meeting of G7 trade ministers last week.
Protesters from Global Justice Now and STOPAIDS called for trade ministers from G7 nations, including the UK’s Liz Truss, to support a waiver of the vaccine manufacturers’ trade related intellectual property rights (TRIPS) agreement.
As a petition calling for G7 leaders and pharmaceutical chief executives to suspend patents passed two million signatures, Heidi Chow, senior campaigns and policy manager at Global Justice Now, said, “Liz Truss and her G7 counterparts have a choice to make.
“They can protect big pharma profits and prolong this pandemic. Or they can follow the United States, India, South Africa, and the majority of the world’s nations and clear away the intellectual property barriers that are restricting global vaccine production.”
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