A better normal

Equitable and free access to vaccines is vital to tackling the coronavirus pandemic, preventing new variants emerging and protecting us all, yet Global South countries have only been able to access a fraction of the number of vaccines that Global North countries have been able to.  72 per cent of shots that have gone into arms worldwide have been administered in high- and upper-middle-income countries. Only 0.9 per cent of doses have been administered in low-income countries. 39  The World Health Organisation reports that while 67 per cent of the population in high income countries have received at least one shot of the vaccine, only 10.56 per cent of the population in low income countries have received at least one shot.  This is due to the high cost of purchasing patented vaccines.40   As a consequence the pandemic is having a catastrophic effect on the health and livelihoods of Global South societies, deepening global inequalities.  Meanwhile, low rates of vaccinations enabled the Omicron variant to develop – the WHO has warned further mutations of the virus are likely if large populations remain unvaccinated.41

The World Trade Organisation’s Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property rights - or TRIPs - rules prevent Global South countries from locally producing low-cost versions of patented Covid vaccines.  A waiver to these rules has been proposed by South Africa and India which would enable countries to produce affordable versions of patented Covid vaccines.  This waiver would allow Global South countries to provide their populations with the vaccines they critically need, as well as enable countries to produce low-cost Covid tests, medical treatments, Personal Protective Equipment products and other vital public health tools.  The development of these vaccines was funded overwhelmingly by public money, and their use should be viewed as a public good. 

Shamefully the UK government is one of the few countries globally to be blocking a waiver to TRIPs rules.  Over 100 governments now support a waiver to the TRIPs rules including the US, Australia and New Zealand. 

The TUC urges the government to use the UK's influence to reduce global inequalities and promote public health worldwide by supporting the waiver to TRIPs rules proposed by South Africa and India.

• 39 The New York Times (2022) ‘Tracking Coronavirus vaccinations around the world’, available at: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/world/covid-vaccinations-tracker.html
• 40 UNDP (2022) ‘Vaccine Access’, available at: https://data.undp.org/vaccine-equity/accessibility/
• 41 World Health Organisation (WHO), ‘Interim statement on booster doses of Covid-19 vaccine’, available at: https://www.who.int/news/item/22-12-2021-interim-statement-on-booster-doses-for-covid-19-vaccination---update-22-december-2021