Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Wednesday, 6 October 2021

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine

EU Regulation on Veterinary Medicinal Products (Resumed): Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine

Photo of Michael CollinsMichael Collins (Cork South West, Independent)
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I will be brief. I will share my time with Deputy Nolan so I will try to make my questions as brief as possible. Is the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine aware of the proposal that has been presented by farmers' associations, co-operatives, pharmacists and many vets and merchants to form a regulatory body for responsible persons? Why has the Department not consulted with the latter? Their jobs are under threat. A code of practice and prescribing protocol could be carefully built. This move would ensure that an assessment of herd health would be met and advice would be given on all aspects of how to address resistance before a medicine is dispensed. This would enable the responsible person to issue an advisory prescription that in no way undermines or challenges the full veterinary prescription. This is another viable option that the Department has dismissed. Why?