Activities of Miguel URBÁN CRESPO related to 2020/2117(INI)
Shadow opinions (1)
OPINION on the trade-related aspects and implications of COVID-19
Amendments (6)
Amendment 4 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Notes that COVID-19 has caused an unprecedented health, economic, social and humanitarian crisis on a global scale, with asymmetric effects for least developed countries (LDCs); calls for the EU to tailor its commitments and approach to developing countries and LDCs accordinglystresses that the COVID-19 crisis is widening inequalities between rich and developing countries, as clearly demonstrated by the blatant inequality in access to vaccines; calls on the EU to develop international trade policies aimed at reducing those inequalities and poverty, consistent with its commitments to policy coherence for development principles (PCD) and the SDGs;
Amendment 8 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 a (new)
Paragraph 1 a (new)
1a. Underlines the link between deforestation and the risks of new zoonotic pandemics; recalls how trade liberalization is one of the causes of increased deforestation, and calls on the commission to avoid signing free trade agreements that could contribute to deforestation;
Amendment 12 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Calls on the Commission to mount an assertive and coordinated international trade policy response geared towards a multilateral, resilient , fair and sustainable recovery in developing countries; calls on the Commission to deepen EU-Africa trade relations through a review of the impact of its economic partnership agreements, while making the most of the EU’s Aid for Trade Strategy on local economies and societies, with a view to prevent any harm to local development and the environment and aimed at achieving the SDGs; calls for a full cancellation of the debt of developing countries, to allow developing countries to use their resources to respond to the crisis and strengthen their fragile public health and social security systems;
Amendment 41 #
5. WelcomesTake notes of the commitment shown by the EU and its Member States in tackling the wider impact of COVID-19, in particular through the Coronavirus Global Response and COVAX initiatives; notes with concern that the COVAX scheme is a Public Private Partnership, led by donor countries, the pharmaceutical private sector and private foundations, with a marginal role for the WHO; calls for full transparency about its management and decision making process, and for a full involvement of developing countries and public authorities; expresses its concern that the COVAX mechanism alone would not be sufficient to grant global protection against COVID-19 and that it will not be able to cover the vaccine needs of developing countries, especially in Africa; calls on the EU Commission to directly support developing countries’ vaccine production capacity, to encourage technology transfer through the sharing of patents and technologies, and to support the proposal of a temporary waiver of IPRs on COVID-19 vaccines and treatments in the WTO; calls on the Commission to coordinate with the World Health Organization and the African Union in order to scale up vaccine production for developing countries;
Amendment 50 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5 a (new)
Paragraph 5 a (new)
5a. Deeply regrets that the EU has opposed the proposal of India and South Africa for a temporary waiver on patents and IPRs for COVID-19 vaccines and treatments at the WTO, a proposal supported by all developing countries; urges the EU to change this approach and to support the request for a temporary waiver on IPRs on COVID-19 vaccines and treatments;
Amendment 53 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5 b (new)
Paragraph 5 b (new)
5b. Regrets that pharmaceutical companies have chosen not to engage with the WHO COVID-19 Technology Access Pool (C-TAP), an initiative that aims to encourage the voluntary contribution of IP, technologies and data to support global sharing and scale-up of manufacturing and supply of COVID-19 health technologies and that despite huge public funding, there is no tool for the EU and its Member States to force pharmaceutical companies to engage in such mechanism.