Geraldine Feeney (Fianna Fail)

I welcome the Minister back to the House. He strikes a balance in bringing the Opticians (Amendment) Bill 2002 before us. As it is much easier to pronounce the word "optician" than "optometrist", I will continue to use the word "optician". I welcome the Bill which provides for a number of matters. First and foremost, it addresses the evolution of this whole branch of the health profession and brings its practitioners and their services into the 21st century.

We can divide the amendments to the 1956 Act into two areas, one of which affects the public interest – other Senators and the Minister have referred, for example, to the sale of ready-readers and the use of restricted drugs – while the other allows the board to apply more realistic fees and, more importantly, access qualifications and professional standards both within and outside the European Union. I will not go through the entire Bill, which is short. As other Senators have taken time to go through it, rather than repeat what everybody else has said, I will touch briefly upon a few areas that I see as great achievements on the part of the Minister and his Department.

It is great to see the deregulation of the sale of ready-readers, bringing us into line with other countries. At the same time, however, it is reassuring to know that the Association of Optometrists, in disseminating information to the public, will highlight the fact that the service is not a substitute for a thorough eye examination, on which it is to be commended because the onus is clearly back in its court in this regard. It is also good that we still have tight control over the sale of contact lenses and the use of prescription goggles and sun glasses. Last summer one of my young daughters went into Claire's Accessories in Dublin looking for transparent contact lenses. I asked her the reason she was looking for them and she told me that they made one's eyes look bigger. I went into the store with her but the lenses were not on sale. I am glad they are not because problems start when young teenagers do this.

I shall refer briefly to the use of the three particular drugs that will now be used by the optometrist. I am very glad that the Minister has had the good sense to move in this area because I am sure he considered the four year degree course and the practical component students undertake as part of their training, which is concentrated on the use of drugs in relation to the eye. I cannot understand where Senator Henry is coming from but since 1959, the year I was born, this group has not seen an amendment to the legislation governing its profession. As a State, we owe a great debt to opticians. I am not aware of any optician who has been in trouble for misdiagnosing. My experience of opticians has always been that if they spot something, they will refer an individual on immediately. This legislation will allow them to do their job even more effectively. At long last, the Minister has given them the tools to carry out their work in a more professional manner.