Press Release: Access to medicines: Commission welcomes agreement on compulsory licensing for export of patented medicine to countries in need

The European Commission welcomed the vote on 1 December 2005 in the European Parliament on the Commission’s proposal for a regulation allowing companies to produce copies of patented medicines under license for export to developing countries. The Commission acknowledged that both the Council and the European Parliament had made significant efforts in order to reach this agreement at first reading. The compulsory licensing regulation was particularly important as regards the EU's relationship with developing countries and this agreement was held to represent a key political signal for negotiations at the forthcoming WTO Ministerial Conference in Hong Kong.