Contributions
543 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDVaccine Patents WaiverMy Lords, the UK remains open to all initiatives that will have a demonstrable impact on vaccine production and distribution, and we will continue to engage constructively in…24 Jan 2022HANSARDVaccine Patents WaiverMy Lords, we have seen no evidence that intellectual property is a barrier to the production or supply of Covid-19 goods, including vaccines. We will continue to engage…24 Jan 2022HANSARDVaccine Patents WaiverMy Lords, I am really pleased to say that the UK has been a world leader in ensuring that developing countries can access vaccines, through our early support to the COVAX scheme…24 Jan 2022HANSARDVaccine Patents WaiverMy Lords, the noble Lord is right to put that example before the House, and I shall make sure that I have a look at it and see whether we can follow it up.24 Jan 2022HANSARDUK-Ukraine Credit Support AgreementMy Lords, I join other noble Lords in thanking the noble Baroness, Lady Hayter of Kentish Town, the esteemed chair of our International Agreements Committee, for having secured…05 Jan 2022HANSARDUK-Ukraine Credit Support AgreementI thank the noble Baroness for that intervention. I was going to conclude by saying that I would write to her on that. I hope that she finds that acceptable. I thank your…05 Jan 2022HANSARDUK-Ukraine Credit Support AgreementMy Lords, I think I would like to rest on saying that a whole range of sanctions and other options are under consideration. I was also asked about co-ordination with allies. I…05 Jan 2022HANSARDUK-Ukraine Credit Support AgreementMy Lords, I can confirm that a whole range of sanctions and matters are being considered, but I hope that the noble Lord will accept that to give details of them today would not…05 Jan 2022HANSARDMaldives: TariffsI congratulate the noble Lord on extending the range of this Question to talk about the important matter of the Royal Navy. Of course, I fully sympathise with him on that. Who…14 Dec 2021HANSARDMaldives: TariffsMy Lords, when setting MFN tariffs and the UK global tariff, we of course have to balance various interests: UK interests, meeting strategic trade objectives and the maintenance…14 Dec 2021HANSARDMaldives: TariffsMy Lords, it is a long time since I did geography at school, but I am not entirely sure that what we are doing in the Atlantic necessarily applies to the Maldives. I do not have…14 Dec 2021HANSARDMaldives: TariffsMy Lords, my noble friend makes a good point about the fishing practices used by fishermen in the Maldives, on which we must congratulate them. However, there are classifications…14 Dec 2021HANSARDMaldives: TariffsMy Lords, the Maldives is an important trading partner for the UK and we are keen to co-operate on trade opportunities including in such areas as food, drink and sustainable…14 Dec 2021HANSARDMaldives: TariffsMy Lords, on many occasions the House has heard me refer to the FTA negotiations. We are hoping to finalise now with Australia and New Zealand, we are hoping to resume trade…14 Dec 2021HANSARDMaldives: TariffsMy Lords, no one could feel warmer towards the Maldives than I do. In a sense, it is a matter of congratulation for the Maldives that it is now an upper-middle-income country. We…14 Dec 2021HANSARDMaldives: TariffsMy Lords, that is another good point made by my noble friend. The issue of a free trade agreement covering the whole of the Commonwealth is the rich diversity of nations in the…14 Dec 2021HANSARDMaldives: TariffsMy Lords, my noble friend makes another good point. The UK currently has a busy and ambitious FTA negotiation programme with a full pipeline of negotiations. Sadly, we therefore…14 Dec 2021HANSARDMaldives: TariffsMy Lords, I think that is a rather unfair point. I do not have the figures at my fingertips but I well remember a debate that we had just a couple of months ago on the agreements…14 Dec 2021HANSARDMaldives: TariffsAgain, the noble Lord is quite right to applaud the fishermen in the Maldives but, as I said, these things are governed by rules not always set by the WTO. We hope always to take…14 Dec 2021HANSARDMaldives: TariffsOf course size matters, my Lords, but it is not an easy criterion to apply to free trade agreements.14 Dec 2021