214. Deputy Malcolm Byrne asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment to outline Ireland's engagement with the European unified patents system; and his plans for a referendum to join the system. [66519/26]

The international Agreement on a Unified Patent Court (UPCA) was signed by twenty-five EU Member States during Ireland’s EU Presidency in 2013, with a view to establishing the Unified Patent Court (UPC). The UPC is an International court set up by participating EU Member States to deal with the infringement and validity of Unitary Patents.

Government has committed that a local division of the UPC will be established in Ireland if the State ratifies the Agreement on a Unified Patent Court (UPCA), under which the UPC is established. A successful Constitutional referendum will be required to allow for the transfer of jurisdictional powers from our Courts to the new international Court in cases of patent litigation. Meanwhile, Ireland attends both the Administrative and Budget Committees of the UPC in an observer capacity in order to be fully informed in the event of a successful referendum.

Ireland sees many benefits to the ratification of the UPC including increased competitiveness for the small and medium enterprise sector, cost benefits, support for innovative R&D, and enhancement of Ireland’s overall competitiveness in a rapidly- evolving global economy.

The previous Government reaffirmed its commitment to ratifying and participating in the UPC system and had scheduled a referendum for 7 June 2024, to coincide with the European Parliament elections. On 16th April 2024, it was decided to defer the date for the referendum to a future date in order to facilitate greater public discourse and more informed debate on the matter. The timing of the Referendum remains under review.