Professor Simon More:

I agree with Senator Lombard about the need for joined-up thinking, a single voice and common objective. That is the most important lesson we learned from the countries that have been able to move, namely, there is agreement and a common objective. My colleague Ms McCoy will speak more on this. We seek a host of things that are necessary to come from many directions towards a common objective. We highlight in the paper some of the past decisions which have made it more difficult for us. One third of dairy farms - about 5,000 - will really struggle with the shift to selected dry cow therapy because they do not have mastitis under the level of control needed. We could greatly benefit from Bord Bia providing an impetus to support the move towards lower cell counts. Similarly, the date adjustment and the interpretation currently used, which I outlined in the paper, mean that it is possible for farmers to continue to supply even if they have a serious problem. They are things that need to be addressed. I agree with the Senator on all the points he raised.

On cluster flushing, the fundamental requirement is a very detailed investigation of the problem, as the Senator spoke of, to ensure that any recommended actions will actually address the drivers of the problem. Also there must be very detailed discussion, as there was in the Senator's case, between the farmer and the investigating veterinarian to agree a plan that is workable and is associated subsequently with review. We would support milk recording. We have a fundamental issue now, as the Senator highlighted, as we shift towards selective dry cow therapy. We need individual cow information. We need to know which cow needs to be treated based on evidence of infection. The simplest and most effective way to do that is through milk recording.

Deputy Ring spoke about over-regulation. Again, it very much highlights the need for a multi-pronged approach, which is what Senator Lombard spoke of. It most certainly does not focus solely on what farmers need to do. There is a whole host of different actions that are important. Many relate to farmers but many do not.

I will pick up on three of the points raised by Deputy Nolan and my colleagues will respond to others. On alignment with the North, obviously it is important to work very closely with our Northern neighbours. We are governed by EU regulation which is what is driving what is happening at the moment. On 28 January 2022, we will need to be aligned with the new veterinary medicines regulation. On serious inconvenience to farmers, the key driver is antimicrobial resistance which is one of the key global issues we will increasingly face in coming years. What we see with Covid now is what we may potentially see with antimicrobial resistance unless we are able to take the actions that are necessary now. Otherwise, we will end up in an era where we no longer have any effective antimicrobials. Deputy Nolan spoke of things we should do. We are very much seeking to provide the committee with as best an understanding as we have of science-based information. Our whole purpose is to hopefully inform the committee about the science. We appreciate that science is only one of the components in the decision-making process, we fully understand that, but we hope that we are able to provide science-based information to help support it in as clear a way as possible.