Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Ceann Comhairle's office for selecting this Topical Issue matter for discussion today. I was concerned to read in last Thursday's edition of the Irish Farmers' Journal that the expert working group reviewing the Department's current network of regional veterinary laboratories is recommending the closure of three, namely, those in Sligo, Limerick and Kilkenny. This would be a disaster for two reasons. It would undermine the maintenance of premier disease surveillance facilities at key locations and would discommode farmers, forcing them to travel long distances to avail of critical services which are fundamental to their farm enterprises.

The closure of the Sligo veterinary laboratory will leave the north west without any regional veterinary facility. I come from Donegal and can say from personal experience that the laboratory in Sligo provides highly important services to farmers across the north west. It has conducted more than 3,000 post mortems and has tested 25,500 samples since 2015. The facility serves seven counties including Donegal, Sligo, Cavan and Leitrim. It is the only veterinary laboratory for the entire north-west region.

If these closures are to proceed, the rural communities that depend on the agrifood sector as a primary economic activity will be negatively impacted, with farmers having to transport dead animals hundreds of miles across the country for services that are currently available on a regional basis. I can speak about the situation in the north west and the Sligo laboratory on the basis of personal experience but I am aware that the same situation faces farmers who currently avail of the services of the laboratories in Kilkenny and Limerick.

Any closures would undermine the Government's recently launched rural action plan. In addition, there is significant cross-Border co-operation in the area of animal health and welfare. An all-island animal health and welfare strategy facilitates the free movement of animals on the island but with Brexit on the horizon, the closure of these three veterinary laboratories will put at risk the current animal health monitoring and disease surveillance system in operation, thereby negatively impacting the agrifood sector. We need to be doing everything we can to support farmers, not forcing them to make costly and unnecessary journeys for essential services.

The Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Deputy Creed, has said that he will engage in a consultation process with stakeholders. Can the Minister of State, Deputy Doyle, give an assurance today to very worried farmers in the regions affected that the regional veterinary laboratories in Sligo, Limerick and Kilkenny will remain open? Does the Minister of State believe that we should be enhancing service provision in this vital area rather than downgrading it, which has unfortunately been the hallmark of a number of Fine Gael and Government policies on service provision in rural Ireland? As was outlined in reports last week, these closures will lead to a huge loss of geographical coverage as well as the loss of contact with the industry on a local basis. Rural Ireland has seen enough cuts in recent years. I urge the Minister of State not to add to that by closing these laboratories, which would negatively impact on our biggest native industry.

Andrew Doyle (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I thank Deputy McConalogue for raising this issue. My colleague, the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Deputy Creed, is currently on what seems to be a weekly Brexit-related tour of EU member states.

He was in Estonia yesterday and is in Poland today so he asked me to take this topical issue, which I believe was listed for yesterday.

Apart from a regional veterinary laboratory, RVL, that is co-located with my Department's central laboratory complex at Backweston, County Kildare, my Department operates five other RVLs, which are located at the outskirts of Athlone, Cork, Kilkenny, Limerick and Sligo. Each RVL has a small multidisciplinary team, typically comprising 12 people, including three veterinarians, three laboratory analysts and six support staff. The RVLs have three principal roles: to provide a veterinary laboratory diagnostic service to the farming community through their veterinary practitioners; to collect and publish data on the pattern and frequency of diseases in farmed animals; and to assist in the investigation of incidents or outbreaks of disease of particular animal, environmental or public health significance.

The RVLs provide a diagnostic service to the farming community through private veterinary practitioners, accepting carcasses of animals for post mortem examination and clinical samples - blood, milk, faeces etc. - collected on farm for analysis. All submissions are voluntary and a small fee is charged for most submissions. Each RVL has an effective catchment area for voluntary carcass submissions. Some 90% come from within a 65 km radius or an approximately 1.5 hour drive with a car and trailer. The information derived from providing this service, when aggregated, forms the basis of monthly and annual surveillance reports on animal diseases.

It is essential that we develop a long-term strategy for our laboratories that builds on existing capability and expertise in animal health, food safety and plant sciences and ensures we achieve both operational and scientific excellence. This was the primary reason for tasking a working group, led by Professor Alan Reilly, with undertaking a comprehensive review of our laboratories. Having considered the current and future needs of the Department and its external stakeholders, this working group presented a report to my Department late last year that makes recommendations on the oversight and co-ordination of the laboratories' activities; re-organisation of structures and functions within the central laboratory complex; options for the future development of the regional laboratories, with a view to improving disease investigative and surveillance capability but with the overriding imperative of maintaining and enhancing services to farmers; and human resources management within the laboratories, with a focus on grading structures, career development opportunities and workforce planning.

My Department's laboratory management team is now consulting relevant stakeholders, including staff in all of the laboratories, on these recommendations. It is important to emphasise that a decision on any of the working group's recommendations will require waiting for the outcome of this process. In the case of the RVLs, any decision will be informed by a cost-benefit analysis of the various options that have been proposed. I will refer to some of the specifics in response to the supplementary questions.

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister of State for his response. As Deputies Eamon Scanlon and Tony McLoughlin will attest to, there is grave concern over the proposals, particularly in the north west. Deputy Eamon Scanlon and I have met farming representatives on numerous occasions to hear those concerns, in addition to the very real concerns over any impact the proposals would have on the utilisation of the service.

My key question was whether a report with a final recommendation on closing three RVLs has been submitted to the Minister of State at this stage. There has been consultation with staff over recent weeks. Have they made a final recommendation regarding the approach they are urging the Minister of State and Minister to adopt? Could the Minister of State comment on and clarity that? A report in the Irish Farmers' Journallast Thursday indicated that the recommendation is to close three RVLs, which is very concerning. It was stated that this is the advice to the Minister. Can the Minister of State assure us there is understanding at ministerial, political and departmental levels of the importance of the RVL network and of protecting it?

According to the initial report, the annual running costs of a three-RVL model and the current six-RVL model are the same. Therefore, cost is not an issue, although the capital cost might be slightly higher for the six-RVL model. Crucially, however, the service available to farmers will be much different if the current model is protected and maintained. Can the Minister of State update us on whether the final recommendation has been received? If not, what is the timeframe for submitting it to the Department?

Andrew Doyle (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I am not aware of a final recommendation being made. The concerns raised by the Deputy, Deputies Scanlon and McLoughlin and others are well understood by the Department and by me, as a farmer who has used the laboratory services. It sometimes takes me longer than an hour and a half to get to Backweston if I hit the traffic in the wrong way, although that is neither here nor there. I can understand the concern.

The proposed cost is approximately €1 million per laboratory per year, with the exception of Backweston, which is totally different. It is a fact that three options were presented that are now part of the consultative process. The first involves the current footprint, of six centres, comprising the five RVLs and Backweston. The second involves three centres of excellence, each about twice the size of the existing RVLs, with a sector-specific focus. One would be focused on beef cattle and sheep, one would be focused on pigs and poultry and one would be for dairy. The other option put forward was a single centre similar to the Dutch and Belgian models. The Netherlands and Belgium are smaller geographically but that is just the model that was proposed.

It is important to make the point that the Department is currently finalising - this should inform the final decision - its submission to the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform on the mid-term review of the 2016-21 capital plan, specifying additional payment for capital funding of approximately €10 million over the period 2018 to 2023 for upgrading the physical infrastructure at the RVLs. This submission does state the laboratories are in urgent need of refurbishment but also highlights the working group's deliberations. Within that mix, the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform will be asked to provide more funding for the upgrading of laboratories. Also sought will be the value analysis, which is what the working group has done.

There is a consultative process. There is no decision made. There will not be until the consultative process, which includes the staff, is complete. I appreciate the geographic importance of certain laboratories within the system.

Pat Gallagher (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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To clarify, I know that Deputies Eamon Scanlon, Michael Moynihan and Tony McLoughlin would like to have contributed or asked questions but, unfortunately, Standing Orders do not permit it.

Tony McLoughlin (Sligo-Leitrim, Fine Gael)
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In support of what Deputy McConalogue is saying regarding Sligo-----

Pat Gallagher (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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If I allow the Deputy in, I will have to allow other Deputies in. Deputy McLoughlin knows the Standing Orders as well as I know them.