Paul Daly (Fianna Fail)
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I welcome the Minister of State and his officials to the meeting. As he quite rightly said in his opening statement, this is the second time the committee has addressed this issue. We have already met all of the stakeholders on a couple of occasions and compiled a report. We are now compiling a second report as part of the pre-legislative scrutiny process.

Everyone who has appeared before this committee and all members of the committee itself understand the importance of handling antimicrobial and anti-parasitic resistance. That is not an issue. The stakeholders who will be most affected by the major change in the regulations which will make anti-parasitic medicines prescription-only, told us when they appeared before us how this will affect their businesses. I refer in particular to the businesses of licensed merchants, members of the Irish Co-Operative Organisations Society, ICOS, and the pharmacies in rural Ireland. As recently as last week they were before us and it was not Mystic Meg stuff. They were able to give us numbers and percentages for the drop-off in sales when antimicrobial medicines became prescription-only. They stated that intramammary sales alone are down 90%. They have come a long way in meeting the Department since their first visit here. The major issue is with the claim that the regulation will be implemented but the implementation will avoid anti-competitiveness and will enhance and increase the availability of product. That will not happen when it becomes a veterinary, prescription-only product and that has been proven in the context of the changes to the antimicrobial and intramammary products.

The solution that was put to us, loud and clear, is the inclusion of the "responsible person" when it comes to the prescribing of anti-parastic products. The responsible person has been recognised by the Department. The Department initiated the responsible person programme and stated what training and qualifications were required back in 2012. From what we have been picking up at this committee, the issue is one of differing legal opinion. I believe the Department has legal opinion from the stakeholders and from the Attorney General. In the context of an all-Ireland animal health plan, the suitably qualified person can prescribe anti-parasitics in the North of Ireland. Northern Ireland is outside the EU now but it had accepted a derogation that the suitably qualified person could prescribe anti-parasitics. What we are hearing is that the Department cannot accept the role of the responsible person because responsible persons were not prescribing at the time the regulation was introduced. Yet, the Department recognised them and they were de facto prescribing anti-parasitics from 2012. This cannot be determined on the basis of different legal opinion at the cost of rural jobs and rural businesses. We need to step up to the mark and find a solution. I hope a solution can be found and let it be an Irish solution to an Irish problem. If we do not get this right, the ramifications for jobs and businesses, as well as for animal health and welfare and the quality of our animal-based food products, will be enormous. We will have two different systems on the island and irrespective of what arguments we make against going to the North, people will do so. Anti-parasitic products will come into the North. If farmers do not dose their cattle it will cost them money but if they have to go to the grief of getting prescriptions and so on, then they will get their hands on a bottle. That will not be recorded in the context of traceability or Bord Bia systems but will be administered in the interests of the animals.

It is vitally important that we get this right but there is nothing in the Minister of State's statement to indicate that we are going to overcome that hurdle. We cannot stand over the loss of jobs that was predicted here last week. We did not hear estimates or Mystic Meg stuff. Stakeholders had proof. They told us that their antimicrobial sales dropped by 90% and if they see a similar hit or drop in their anti-parasitic products, they will go out of business. These businesses are the lifeblood of a lot of our rural communities. They have the knowledge on the ground. They understand the type of land being farmed and the type of animals being kept. They know as much about farming practices as vets do and in some cases, they know more. If the veterinarian whose care the animal is under can prescribe off site, it is in essence still the farmer who is going to be self-diagnosing. The farmer will be explaining the symptoms to the vet and then the vet will write a prescription. In that regard, it does not make sense.

I am disappointed that the Minister of State's statement did not address these problems but maybe he can address them now. In my view the only solution, having dealt with this issue for almost two years at this committee, is recognition of the responsible person. To be quite honest, as it stands at the moment I cannot see this Bill passing and I am saying that as a member of the Government.