COVID-19 vaccines: wealthier nations, including the UK, must drop their opposition to the proposed TRIPS waiver at the WTO

Waiving intellectual property protections for COVID-19 vaccines would help boost production and distribution to the world’s poorer countries, particularly as infection levels are once again rising across the globe, and new mutations risk rendering existing vaccines ineffective. A temporary waiver proposal put forward by India and South Africa was nevertheless blocked by a number of wealthier nations, including the UK. In an open letter signed by over 120 academics, Hyo Yoon Kang, Aisling McMahon, Graham Dutfield, Luke McDonagh, and Siva Thambisetty urge that the waiver must be supported.