Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I suspect the figure I gave - 12 confirmed cases - is up to date. These matters tend to be in the public domain as soon as they are identified. There may be cases of which I am unaware that are under scrutiny in the laboratory services to confirm whether the deaths are due to avian influenza but I suspect the figures are the most up to date figures.

We took a range of issues into account. These include migration patterns and epidemiological factors. A critical point is that we have OIE international certification that our confined poultry flocks are avian influenza free. This is important in terms of the market access it gives us. The United Kingdom does not have such status, meaning Northern Ireland does not. The industry in the Deputy's constituency, Cavan-Monaghan, exists cheek by jowl with that in Northern Ireland. Our position is different from that in the North in that we have OIE acknowledged avian influenza free status. That allows us to have unaffected markets. If we were to have an incident, the status would disappear.

See this speech in context