Mary Wallace (Meath, Fianna Fail)

We have succeeded to the extent that, if we had not taken the stance we took, we would have had to designate the range of medicines as POMs 14 months earlier than at present. At least the status quo remains for the moment and will do so until the end of this year. If we had changed the regulations last year, we could have been accused of undermining our negotiating position with the Commission on the argument that the majority of existing non-POMs should remain off prescription, which is still our position.

Nothing has been lost by postponing our decision on the prescription issue and pursuing the exempted mechanism because existing off-prescription arrangements can remain in place in the interim, which is important. Following the result of the criteria debate in Brussels, we will work on what is decided.

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