Mr. Padraic O'Brien:

On the issue of carving out from the joint share pact with the UK, Ireland always partnered with the UK because we are both English-speaking states, so it made sense. The point that we are trying to raise and address on that issue is the pressure that it puts on what is referred to as the minimum order quantity, where Ireland has to stand on its own two feet in relation to having a viable launch or buying the supply.

Ireland is well represented with generic suppliers. MFI has 11 members. Most of the big European generic suppliers in Europe are committed to Ireland, have a presence and large workforces in Ireland. However, when a market is compartmentalised from being a larger market into a smaller market, there can be issues. On a European and global scale, Ireland still remains a small market. Understandably, it will have pressures that a larger market will not have, from a viability perspective.

At every opportunity, the environment should provide for as many generics to be dispensed as possible to support generic suppliers in achieving the necessary minimum order quantities. Ireland has improved significantly over the past decade in generic penetration. That is testament to the savings that have been delivered, which is in the order of €1.6 billion over the past seven or eight years. The situation has improved and the use of generics in Ireland has increased significantly to such an extent that the market is well represented with big generic suppliers. However, that is not to say that there is not further room for greater generic penetration that would probably bring us up to higher levels that we see in other European countries.

The Senator may well be aware that when a patent loses exclusivity or expires, it can go through a process of interchangeability. This facilitates pharmacists to dispense generics, which triggers these savings for the State. MFI welcomes any mechanism that means that a pharmacist is in a position to choose to dispense a generic. When that is done, a very important component of the lifecycle of all drugs in Ireland is underpinned.