Paul Gavan (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

This morning's news regarding uncertainty over reopening brings into view again the fact the Covid crisis has some way to run. I want to raise the morally indefensible stance of the Government on the issue of intellectual property rights for vaccines. World leaders at the G7 summit two weeks ago proudly proclaimed they would give 1 billion vaccines to poor countries across the world, and that will be welcome if and when they are delivered. However, the world needs 11 billion vaccines. To put it in context, the people of Cornwall where the G7 summit took place outnumber those vaccinated in the 22 poorest countries in Africa. That is the stark injustice and inequality we are facing on this issue. I note from Oxfam if we took the increase in the wealth of the ten richest billionaires on this planet - not their wealth just the increase in their wealth - it would be enough to vaccinate everyone in the world and remove them from poverty. There is something very wrong going on and I have to be direct at this point. I am disgusted by Fine Gael’s attitude to this issue. Its MEPs refused to support a motion calling for the intellectual property rights on vaccines to be removed. One of them voted against that proposal. I am glad colleagues from all parties at the Council of Europe supported the call for the intellectual property rights to be removed.

I must highlight some of the spurious arguments that have been made, including by our Tánaiste. The first is there is no idle vaccine production capacity. That is not the case. Companies in Israel, Canada, Bangladesh, South Korea and Pakistan have all tried in vain to obtain the rights to increase production of Covid-19 but the EU and the Fine Gael Party in Ireland have stood against them. The second argument is the global south does not have the capacity or know-how to produce more vaccines. That is a line peddled by the Tánaiste. That is absolutely not true. Manufacturers are making safe and effective Covid-19 vaccines and medicines in South Africa, India and Brazil and there is plenty more qualified capacity we can draw on from Bangladesh to Senegal to Vietnam. A further such argument is quality cannot be assured, which is a red herring. There is no evidence whatsoever to support that. What we are dealing with here is evidence-free arguments from the Government. The reality is the Government is standing with big pharma against the people of the world regarding the most important issue facing the people of the planet right now.

I want to ask people when the history of this Covid epidemic is written if they want to have it on their record that they did not call for the intellectual property rights to be waived in order that we could get vaccines to the people who need them across the world. Is that the stance they are prepared to take? I call for an urgent debate on this matter. It will not wait until after the summer recess. We need to have answers from each member of the Government parties as to why they have not stood up and called for justice for the world in the face of the greatest crisis. We all know no one is safe until everyone is safe. It is common sense. If we can defeat this virus, we need to make sure the world is vaccinated and yet it is a matter of record and regret that this Government, particularly the Fine Gael Party, is standing in opposition to the actions needed right now across the world.