Health Bill [HL]

The noble Lord, Lord Naseby, and the noble Lord, Lord Borrie, question whether my amendment infringes property rights of trademarks. Existing trade obligations protect the property rights of trademarks. On the other hand, a key agreement used by the industry to make the argument is the 1994 Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights, often known as TRIPS. The agreement makes provision for Governments to act to protect public health and to provide limited exceptions to the rights conferred by a trademark where that is appropriate. As I interpret it, that means that the rights of trademarks are subject to the wider public good and, therefore, can be constrained when shown to benefit public health.