Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Senator Richmond for raising the matter again, and I thank him for highlighting from an early stage in the House and in every possible forum his view that Ireland and Dublin would be an ideal location for the European Medicines Agency. I have had a number of conversations with Senator Richmond on this and I am very grateful to him for his support for the Government's bid for Ireland and Dublin to host the EMA.

The EMA plays a very important role in the protection and promotion of public health through the scientific evaluation, supervision and safety monitoring of medicines for human and veterinary use in the European Union. As a consequence of Brexit, a decision will have to be made on a new location for the European Medicines Agency. In view of its important public health remit, it is absolutely essential the relocation is managed in a way that ensures minimal impact on the vital work of the EMA during the transition period and beyond. I cannot stress this enough. While there is rightly a debate on the location, as a Minister for Health in the EU I strongly feel it is so important there is certainty as quickly as possible about the location, and the overriding criterion must be to minimise disruption of the vital work in the interests of patients in this country and patients throughout the EU. The Government believes the decision should be made quickly once Article 50 is triggered, and that it will be important to arrive at a solution that maximises retention of existing staff.

On 25 October 2016, the Government agreed to my request that Dublin should seek to be the new location of the EMA. The Government also approved the establishment of an interdepartmental and interagency working group, chaired at senior level by the Department of Health, to prepare a bid to support relocation of the agency to Dublin. This group consists of representatives from the Departments of the Taoiseach, Foreign Affairs and Trade, Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, and Agriculture, Food and the Marine, as well as the Health Products Regulatory Authority, HPRA, IDA Ireland, the Health Research Board, Enterprise Ireland and Science Foundation Ireland. The group will shortly undertake a consultation process with wider stakeholders, including importantly, representatives of the pharmaceutical industry, business and patients.

Work on a bid for Dublin is well advanced. The group has identified a number of factors which would make Dublin the suitable, ideal and best location. These include the use of the English language, a city and country which are safe, stable pro-EU environments, proximity to London so staff can either move or commute here and proximity to the Irish medicines regulator, the HPRA. There is also the strong record the country has of regulating medicines to an exemplary standard.The country's growing economy means that the spouses of EMA staff would have strong employment opportunities here. There is excellent air connectivity with other EU capitals and internationally. There is a strong pharmaceutical and life sciences sector in Dublin. We have a depth and density of talent when it comes to available people. I met the European Commissioner for Health and Food Safety, Mr. Vytenis Andriukaitis, in October 2016 to discuss Dublin’s suitability in the context of relocation of the EMA. Following the meeting, I wrote to him to set out formally some of the reasons Dublin would be a suitable location. As the Senator mentioned, I travelled to the headquarters of the EMA on Canary Wharf in London on Monday of this week to meet its executive director, Professor Guido Rasi. While the contents of the meeting are confidential, I can tell the House that it was a very useful information-sharing exercise. I had an opportunity to outline what Ireland was considering and explain why we believed Ireland would be a good location. I heard from the EMA about its preparedness for relocation.

The crucial point is that disruption must be minimised because of the vital nature of the EMA's work. There has been a wide range of informal contacts on this issue with individuals at home and abroad. I will visit Brussels on 6 February for a further meeting with the European Commissioner for Health and Food Safety and a number of other representatives of the Commission, including Commissioner Hogan, a number of Irish MEPs, Irish diplomatic representatives in Brussels, and stakeholders and business people representing Irish interests. Work will continue in the coming weeks and months to prepare the country's bid to have the EMA relocated to Dublin. Officials will use every possible opportunity to present the case for Dublin at home and abroad. With my team, I had an opportunity last night to brief the Taoiseach on the matter. I am delighted that he is fully supportive of the bid. I look forward to his continued support as we work on it in the coming weeks. The relocation of the EMA to this city would be good for Ireland and Dublin. Most importantly from an EU perspective, it would be good for the workings of the EMA. I will certainly keep the Senator and the other Members of the House up to date as the bid progresses.