Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)

It is fair to state that the cost of veterinary fees represents a significant portion of the costs incurred by those who own livestock farms. Compulsory testing has become part and parcel of farming. The standards we impose on farmers are expensive. That is one of the reasons I make no apologies to anyone who may be critical of the single farm payment system or the other systems of financial support for farmers. It costs more to produce food in the European Union than is the case in other parts of the world and European consumers must pay for that because it is they who demand higher standards. That is what is involved in the support systems to which we refer and in respect of which I am obliged, in the context of the CAP, to negotiate on a weekly basis. The implications of compulsory testing and the other matters I have outlined are increased costs for farmers.

All of the evidence suggests that there is a significant difference between what some farmers pay to veterinarians and what others pay. The evidence also shows that, potentially, there is a big difference with regard to what they pay for medicines. There is no doubt that some veterinarians charge a great deal more than others. The first thing we should do is encourage farmers to shop around. If there is evidence of cartels operating in different regions or counties, I need to know about it so that we can investigate. I would be slow to go down the road of introducing a cap in respect of the amount veterinarians can charge for services provided. Once a cap was introduced on one service, there would be immediate calls for similar caps to be put in place in respect of others.

Veterinary inspections are part of farming now. It is the responsibility of farmers, as business people, to shop around to try to obtain the services and products they require at the best possible price. They should consider entering into partnerships so that they might share the cost of paying veterinary bills, and so on to try to drive prices down. A cap in respect of the charges veterinarians can impose would probably be too blunt a tool. There are other ways in which farmers can help themselves in this regard.

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