There are many uncertainties with the Covid pandemic, particularly now with the emergence of the Delta variant. There is uncertainty about whether we can win the race in terms of vaccination to get ahead of this variant and ensure that things do not go into reverse, plunging us into lockdowns and more people getting sick and going to hospital. It is still unclear, given where we are at in the vaccination programme, whether the rise in the Delta variant will lead to higher levels of hospitalisation, sickness, admission to ICU, or, indeed, fatality.

However, there is one thing that we pretty much do know now, which is the more people who are vaccinated, the better protected we are and the less likely it will be that variants will undermine all the progress that has been made. We know that is not just true here. Critically, on a global level, it is true that even if we get to the point we need to - and we are not there yet - in terms of having sufficient numbers of people vaccinated, if huge swathes of the world do not have access to vaccines, more variants will develop and those variants will reach Ireland, Europe and other places, even though people may be vaccinated.

The question of vaccine supplies, both for here and globally, is critical if we are going to get beyond this grim, depressing pandemic. There is a very significant movement that has been calling, particularly on the EU, to waive the intellectual property rights and patents that the big pharmaceutical vaccine-producing companies are using to protect their profits. It is a serious problem. The European Parliament has voted by a majority to say that those intellectual property restrictions and patents should be removed and that the vaccine-producing companies should be forced to share the technology to produce the vaccines with anybody who can produce them across the world. Let us be clear, it is profit that is stopping them from doing that. Pfizer is making an 80% mark-up on the doses of its vaccine because it wants to protect the money it is making. That is not acceptable. In fact, it is immoral, when some of the poorest countries in the world have less than 1% of their populations vaccinated.

We need to use every single bit of capacity, globally, to produce vaccines if we are going to defeat this pandemic and come out of this miserable situation that we have been in for the last year and half. Yet, the European Commission - it is not clear what the Government's position is on the issue - is not committing to that position and supporting the people's vaccine. There is a meeting of the WTO on 14 July. What is the Government's position? Will it call for the people's vaccine, which is being supported by Dr. Mike Ryan and the WHO, to allow the sharing of vaccine technology to increase the supply of vaccines globally to all those who need them?

Through the Chair, a Cheann Comhairle, the Deputy has raised an important issue in respect of the need for a global vaccination programme that is effective and efficient. I do not think the solution offered by the Deputy is the correct one. I think it is simplistic and in itself, it would not generate the additional supplies of vaccines.

I also think that the Deputy should acknowledge that of all the blocs across the world, the EU has been the most open, effective and efficient in terms of vaccine production and in the export of vaccines across the world. There have been no export bans in Europe, which has facilitated the capacity of countries all over the world to get vaccines. The Deputy never acknowledges that. It is always attack, attack, attack, through the Chair. He is attacking the Commission and attacking governments. The reality is that Europe has been to the fore. We should acknowledge and celebrate Europe's achievement, both in terms of the procurement of vaccines and the pre-purchase agreements, which gave funding, which was an important factor in getting vaccines produced within 12 months. Intellectual property is important in the advancement of science and research. It should not be dismissed as easily as the Deputy dismisses it. It is extremely important. Technology transfer and know-how are important.

The European Union has pledged €1 billion to Africa to develop manufacturing capacity and know-how to facilitate technology transfer. I would argue that the European Commission's response, and indeed that of the European Council, of which I am a member, as is the country, is more intelligent and sensible than the sloganeering of just waiving, TRIPS waivers and so on. The sloganeering does not cut it here in terms of the increased production of vaccines. It just does not cut it. It is ideologically fine and pure and all the rest of it, but it does not cut it. To be fair, the issue of global vaccination is absolutely essential if we are to deal with variants and get on top of this disease. However, we have to support know-how in certain locations across the world. Europe has made a very solid contribution to Africa.

As for the WTO, we are also engaging in the proposal at the TRIPS council in terms of initiatives and trying to reach a sensible working compromise that would get vaccines to the countries concerned with low and middle incomes. Europe has been constructive in that regard. It is all about production capacity. As I said, the EU has announced €1 billion in terms of building production capacity in Africa. That will provide long-term production capacity in Africa. The US Government-----

Time is up.

This business of attacking the Opposition and accusing it of sloganeering really has to stop. I do not think the Taoiseach would accuse Dr. Mike Ryan of being a left-wing sloganeer, but he is supporting the people's vaccine. Médecins sans Frontières and UN aid agencies are supporting the people's vaccine. Many of the countries that for years suffered the consequences of the refusal of big pharmaceutical companies to share the combination therapies to deal with AIDS and HIV until they were forced to back down by a popular movement that demanded those intellectual property rights and patents restrictions were removed, which helped us actually get on top of the AIDS crisis, are saying the situation is exactly the same here.

Let us be clear. The Taoiseach mentioned a compromise. Why do the big vaccine-producing companies not want to share the technology? I ask the Taoiseach to tell me why. We all know the answer. They do not want to share the technology with other places that have the capacity to produce vaccines because it would impinge on their profits. Let us remember that it was public money, through those advance orders, to the order of €6 billion, that actually paid for the development of those vaccines. That is how they were able to do it. It was public money that paid for it. Public health and defeating the pandemic should come ahead of the profit hunger of these big vaccine producers. The Taoiseach should take a clear position in calling for the TRIPS waiver to be introduced.

We have taken a position. We have taken a sensible position to get vaccines produced in greater volumes. Waiving intellectual property rights tomorrow morning will not do that. It will not do it. Does the Deputy know anything about pharmaceutical production? This country does know a thing or two about it. It is about sharing technology, capacity and know-how-----

Why will they not do it?

------to get these vaccines produced.

We are doing it. The EU is doing it. It has pledged €1 billion to increase manufacturing and production in Africa. It is co-operating with the WTO and the TRIPS initiative to get a sensible outcome around the expansion of production and facilitating equitable access. There were discussions around here at the beginning of the year about the lack of enhanced production within Europe itself. Europe set about getting its house in order and increased production significantly. We are now doing RNA substance development in Dublin, which is important.

Countries that know how to do this fast should do so faster. Some of those countries the Deputy is talking about were offered vaccines at cost price and refused at the beginning of the pandemic. There are leadership issues in some of these countries that we need to face up to.