Written question asked by Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Conservative) on Tuesday, 1 December 2020, in the House of Lords. It was due for an answer on Tuesday, 15 December 2020. It was answered by Baroness Sugg (Conservative) on Thursday, 10 December 2020 on behalf of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.

Drugs: Developing Countries

Question: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking (1) to prevent the sale of counterfeit drugs to developing countries, and (2) to ensure that only patented drugs are sold to those countries. [I]

Original answer: The UK has long supported strategies to increase access to safe, effective, quality, and affordable essential medicines to people living in low- and middle-income countries. This includes patented products, and their generic equivalents, which are affordable versions of brand name products. We also work to prevent the spread of substandard, falsified, and counterfeit medicines; for example, through support to the WHO's Global Surveillance and Monitoring System for substandard and falsified medical products.

The answer was corrected by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon (Conservative)

on Wednesday, 16 December 2020 on behalf of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.

Corrected answer: The UK has long supported strategies to increase access to safe, effective, quality, and affordable essential medicines to people living in low- and middle-income countries. This includes patented products, and their generic equivalents, which are affordable versions of brand name products. We also work to prevent the spread of substandard, falsified, and counterfeit medicines; for example, through support to the WHO's Global Surveillance and Monitoring System for substandard and falsified medical products.

Secondary information