Eugene Murphy (Roscommon-Galway, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

It is sometimes easier to get from Kilkenny to Dublin than it is to get from Roscommon to Dublin. The traffic after Palmerstown is chaotic. I apologise for arriving at the end of the meeting.

I am very much supportive of this campaign on the basis that I know, from people who come to me, many of whom are elderly, that many of those health products are a considerable support. I know of one person who had to be taken into hospital numerous times in the middle of the night with serious pain. This person started taking a special supplement, which has meant the emergency services no longer come out and a hospital bed is no longer taken up. That side of things should not be forgotten.

The health food sector is one of the few sectors to have expanded n rural Ireland. These businesses are opening in many towns where other businesses have closed. God knows, we want more of these developments in rural towns and villages. I do not want to hold up the meeting. I am very supportive of the campaign. I hope the representations made today will be taken into account in the budget and VAT will not be applied to many of these products which are very important, particularly to our ever growing ageing population.