Last Tuesday (Mar 7th, 2017), a non-legislative motion has been approved by the Industries Committee of the Spanish Parliament (‘Congreso de los Diputados’) pleading for the accession to the European Unitary Patent system. Filed on Feb 14th, 2017 by the Socialist Party (‘PSOE’), the initiative has been ratified without amendment by all parliamentary political parties, but one: the Popular Party (‘PP’), currently leading a single-party minority government. Although the latter gained the backing of the Citizens Party (‘Ciudadanos’) and the tacit support from the PSOE, both parties have now distanced themselves from PP’s stubborn refusal to join the European Unitary Patent system. The motion filed by the PSOE highlights the serious consequences of Spain remaining outside the system for competitiveness and innovation. Up to date, no official statement has been yet released by the PP itself, nor by any of its government representatives, on the reasons behind voting against the initiative.
The entire contribution can be read here.
Contributor: Luis Fernández-Novoa, HOYNG ROKH MONEGIER