PJ Murphy (Fine Gael)

I express concerns about what is coming down the track soon with the Veterinary Medicinal Products, Medicated Feed and Fertilisers Regulation Act 2023. From 1 September, the new regulations will deem all antiparasitic veterinary drugs to be prescription only. These are a large number of remedies used on farms on a day-to-day basis, such as sheep dip, dry cow mastitis tubes and ivermectin that is used for treating cattle for worms, fluke and lice. These products are currently available over the counter and have been for many years. The products are on the market under tight Department of agriculture control and experienced well-trained staff provide advice to farmers at the point of sale.

According to new EU harmonised legislation, prescribing must be undertaken by veterinary practitioners, who are also permitted to sell and dispense these products. Most importantly, there is no requirement for vets to keep prescribing and dispensing separate from one another, creating a concerning conflict of interest. This shift is not just a regulatory update. It is an economic and structural seismic shift to the many small independent licensed traders across this country. According to the Central Statistics Office, CSO, Ireland's veterinary medicines market is worth approximately €400 million annually. While €300 million of this already ends up with veterinary practitioners, the remaining €100 million goes to a network of small, independent merchants and co-ops found in towns and villages across rural Ireland.

The Independent Licensed Merchants Association, which represents 350 of these smaller merchants nationwide, warns that only 38 of its members can remain in business under these new rules. That is a potential loss of nearly 90% of this industry. This is a choice that is anti-competitive. The justification given to this change is that we need to combat antimicrobial resistance by ensuring responsible use of medicines through mandatory prescriptions, while also improving traceability and oversight via the national veterinary prescription system which requires all prescriptions to be on a central controlled database. However, as a person who has worked my whole life in the cattle farming sector and administered these medications on thousands of occasions, I assure this House that we as farmers are not in the habit of overusing these expensive medications and do not use them when they are not necessary. Indeed, it quite on the contrary. I fear the inevitable price rise, which will result from the gifting of a monopoly on the sale of these crucial antiparasitic products could result in their under use leading to severe animal welfare concerns. I have great fear that it could also lead to an increase in the purchasing of these medicines through black market sources.

While the goals of health and EU compliance are important, implementation must reflect Irish rural reality. Without safeguards for independent merchants, this regulation risks creating a dangerous monopoly in the veterinary medicine distribution sector. On my own behalf and my Fine Gael colleague and Councillor Michael Boyle from Donegal County Council, I urge the Minister for agriculture to postpone the implementation of these regulations and conduct a full and independent review of the economic and social impact before regrettable and permanent damage is done to this sector.