Paul Coghlan (Fine Gael)

Other speakers referred to the 25% cuts that have been arbitrarily imposed on small pharmacies. The Leader should ask the Minister for Health and Children to talk to the Irish Pharmaceutical Union. An independent body recommended that these matters should be dealt with on a phased basis. There was a recommendation that they should get away from branded medicines and deal with generic medicines. There is much that can be done. No one wants to see job losses resulting from the closure of small pharmacies. All this is needlessly under threat with many other things that are going wrong in the economy, which Senator Butler and others mentioned. I am sure the Leader will agree that the Minister for Health and Children must engage in talks and I ask him to have a serious word with her about this situation.