Medicinal and agrochemical products can be granted a Supplementary Protection Certificate, an intellectual property right associated with patents, to provide up to five years of additional rights and protections once their patents have expired. In order to apply for an SPC, a product must receive approval to be sold on the UK market. Under the Northern Ireland/Ireland Protocol, products to be sold in Northern Ireland must obtain approval under EU law, whilst products to be sold in the rest of the UK will obtain approval under UK law. Currently, this marketing authorisation is only given on a UK-wide basis. This regulation amends the market authorisation process to enable authorisations to be granted for the Northern Ireland market only and for the Great Britain market only.
Documents to download
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Coronavirus, Hong Kong and UK Government Support (293 KB, PDF)
COVID-19 is a strand of coronavirus first reported in Wuhan, China. It is a respiratory disease resulting in mild to severe or critical symptoms. Older people and those with existing health conditions are most at risk of developing severe symptoms.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared the COVID-19 outbreak a public health emergency and has urged every country to make tackling the disease its highest priority. Some national and local governments have implemented measures ranging from travel restrictions, strict quarantine requirements, bans on public gatherings and the temporary closure of schools, universities and workplaces.
Hong Kong has had 118 confirmed cases of the disease and three deaths as at 10 March 2020. Worldwide there have been over 113,000 confirmed cases of the disease and over 4,000 deaths. The UK had reported 373 cases and six deaths. The WHO has praised Hong Kong’s government’s response to the outbreak, which has included strict quarantine and travel restrictions and closing some public services, including schools. However, concerns have been raised about the social and economic impact of the measures taken. There have been reports of protests and mass arrests in recent weeks.
The Sino-British Declaration sets out how Hong Kong should be governed following its return to China in 1997. It guarantees certain rights and freedoms for its citizens, some of which obtained British National (Overseas) status, and a high degree of autonomy for the Hong Kong government. These rights and requirements last until 2047. The declaration has been registered with the United Nations (UN) and the UK monitors whether it is being upheld. However, the UK has no specific powers of intervention.
The British Consulate-General in Hong Kong has said it will maintain “close contact with British nationals in the region to ensure they have the latest information they need” if they encounter any difficulties due to the outbreak.
On 19 March 2020, the House of Lords is due to debate a motion moved by Lord Pendry (Labour) to move that “this House takes note of the problems facing the citizens of Hong Kong as a result of Wuhan coronavirus; and the case for Her Majesty’s Government providing support to those affected in the light of the 1984 Sino-British Declaration”.
Documents to download
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Coronavirus, Hong Kong and UK Government Support (293 KB, PDF)
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