Michael McNamara (Clare, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I am slightly surprised by the previous speaker's characterisation of this debate as the Opposition speaking waffle and the Government speaking truth. I never subscribed to an Animal Farmcharacterisation of anything, not even farming and certainly not politics. We have the two legs good, four legs bad view which then changes over and there is a monopoly of wisdom on one side of the House and a monopoly of darkness and ignorance on the other. Governments then change and the monopolies change too. I find that divisive.

I agree with the Deputy, however, to the extent that antimicrobial resistance poses a real problem not just to agriculture but also to humanity. Antimicrobial resistance is a huge problem. We see the result of it in the over-prescribing of medicines to humans. We also saw how antimicrobial resistance grew in the former Soviet Union as a result of the overuse of medicines, sometimes without prescription. Undoubtedly, the same thing can happen and is happening in agriculture.

It is something that needs to be dealt with and I completely agree with Deputy O'Connor to that extent. Equally, I agree with him and with the Minister that the Minister has now very little choice but to bring in this legislation. I would have thought there were other ways to deal with it. Clearly, we need to register the use of antibiotics. Britain obtained a derogation where the dispensing person did not need to be a veterinarian. Ireland did not avail of a derogation at that time. It would be useful to know why because the same practices as existed in Britain, and Northern Ireland for that matter, existed here. I do not have a problem with the requirement to register the use of medicines, or the sale of medicines and to whom they are being sold etc. We need to differentiate a little bit between antimicrobials and antiparasitics in that regard but they are both, as I understand it, being covered by this legislation. Undoubtedly, we need to make sure, as Deputy Cahill said earlier, that there is not an overuse of antiparasitics although arguably this might pose less of an immediate threat than the overuse of antimicrobials. It is still, at best, a waste of money. I do not think anybody would say it is a good idea to be administrating medicines to any livestock if they do not need it. There was a failure to avail of a derogation when Ireland could have. It is not like we do not have plenty of agricultural staff in Brussels; we have always had an agricultural attaché with plenty of support there. I would like to know why that was not availed of at the time.

I am conscious of leaving time for my colleagues to come in but the other concerns I have with regard to the legislation is that we now have a position where inevitably we will have this growth of one-stop shops where veterinarians will prescribe and sell medicine. Potentially there is a dangerous vested interest there in over-prescribing and over-sale of medicines. It is something the Minister should look to curb if he is acknowledging we need this legislation. I accept there is no alternative now but to bring in legislation in accordance with EU law requiring that antimicrobials, and indeed all medicines, be based on a prescription issued by a veterinarian. I would like to know why we did not avail of a derogation when we could have but that ship has sailed or that bird as flown; take whichever cliché one wants to use. Now that we are doing that, is there not a danger of creating a vested interest whereby veterinarians will be able to prescribe and sell? Obviously, the more they prescribe, the more they sell and the more they sell, the more money they make. That is a danger.

With regard to fertilisers, I do not have a problem with the requirement to register fertilisers. There is undoubtedly a huge problem with our water table. Farmers are being scapegoated slightly and Coillte and the forestry sector play a large part in the deterioration of our water table as well. The danger with regard to both medicines and fertilisers is that the regulations are going to come down across the Border and we will have no control, no records, no anything and that is something I fear has not been factored in sufficiently to this.

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