Michael Ring (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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I will be brief. I have not previously had the opportunity to say the following to the IPU, which I ask its representatives to take back to its members. I congratulate the pharmacies in this country for the job they did during the pandemic when other professions were not available. They did an excellent job. Many people were unable to get professional people when they wanted them. They went into the professional people in the pharmacies and dealt with them. Human beings are important. It was important they were there and I want to put that on the record. I have not previously had the opportunity to do that publicly. Pharmacists did a fantastic job during the pandemic. I previously named in the Dáil a profession, the members of which went on holiday and could not be found. People were very sick. I am sure the case was the same for animals. It is sometimes not easy to get a veterinarian because they are busy people. The arrangement we have at present is working very well in Northern Ireland and other parts of Europe. Why can we not have the same arrangement here? There are issues in this country in respect of EU and national regulations.

I will give an example. I recently went to buy a small bit of sterling because someone was going to a wedding in England. It would be easier to go in and rob the bank than get the sterling. That is the truth. I had to sign my name and give the details of what I wanted it for and where I wanted it for. We are over-regulated in this country. The time has come to say "Stop". At the moment, the pharmacies and merchants are all doing a fairly good job. They understand rural people and rural life and the needs of rural people and rural life. We have a crowd of people in Dublin and Europe and every Monday morning they must get up and ask themselves what they can do this week to upset rural people. They are getting paid, of course, so they do not care. They are bringing in rules and regulations and we are over-regulated. We will not have enough offices for all the paperwork that will be required in the future.