Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of introducing legislative proposals for further regulation to tackle online (a) platforms and (b) retail sites that allow the sale of counterfeit and substandard electrical goods.
The Government believes the existing legislative framework is robust and enables the appropriate action to be taken against online platforms and retail sites that allow sales of counterfeit and substandard electrical goods.
The UK was ranked 3rd in the world for its overall IP system by Taylor Wessing in their latest Global IP Index (GIPI) in 2016.
The UK’s IP enforcement regime specifically was ranked 2nd in the world in the US Chamber of Commerce Global Innovation Policy Center (GIPC) IP Index 2018.
The UK is regularly ranked among the top couple of countries in the world for IP protection. Online platforms that fall under UK law have clearly defined responsibilities to take down listings for illegal goods once notified, and the leading platforms have been proactive in developing systems to assist IP rights holders to request takedowns effectively. Examples include the eBay VeRO system, the Amazon Brand Registry, and Ali Baba’s AliProtect.