Paul Kehoe (Wexford, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Mr. Quinn spoke about the shortages of vets but I fear that their work could become clogged up with minor issues. There are shortages of vets in many parts of the country. Will he comment on which countries have a derogation in place? One of our guests stated that prescriptions can issue only after a clinical or proper assessment by a vet, which goes back to my point about clogging up vets' schedules, the shortage of vets and so on. Is there any evidence that the alleged monopoly on existing prescription-only medicines, supplied primarily through vets, has resulted in significant price differences between vets and other suppliers of these prescription-only medicines? On some farms, for example, an antibiotic may occasionally be used if an animal develops pneumonia or mastitis. I come from a farming background and the farmer's best friend was always the antibiotic at hand.