Vol. 533 No. 2
59 Mr. M. Higgins asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the Government's position at the European Union in relation to the suspension of Article 27.3(b) of TRIPS for five years to allow countries to develop an appropriate sui generis system; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [8380/01]
Article 27.3(b) of the WTO TRIPS agreement allows members to exclude from patentability plants and animals other than micro-organisms, and essentially biological processes for the production of plants or animals other than non-biological and microbiological processes. However, the agreement states members must provide for the protection of plant varieties, either by patents or by an effective sui generis system, that is, a system created specially for this purpose, or by any combination of the two. Developing countries were given an extra four years to apply the provision and in the case of least developed countries, the period was extended by ten years.
The TRIPS agreement calls for a review of the provisions of Article 27.3.b four years after the agreement entered into force, that is, review in 1999. This review is under way and continuing in the WTO TRIPS Council. Ireland, along with our EU colleagues, is participating on the basis that the review is addressing the manner in which the provision has been implemented and is not an attempt to rewrite the scope of the provision. The Irish and EU position is that Article 27.3.b of TRIPS provides for the necessary flexibility for WTO Members' implementation and that UPOV and other similar harmonised plant variety systems provide effective models for implementing Article 27.3.b. As such, a suspension of the provision is not envisaged or supported.
