Vol. 469 No. 3
207 Mr. M. Brennan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Forestry the reason a decision has been made to discontinue blood testing in the laboratory in Sligo in view of the fact that Sligo and the north west as a whole is an area from which there is a high export of cattle to Northern Ireland and Scotland and the withdrawal of this facility will mean a delay of between two and four weeks in getting test results from the Cork laboratory. [17271/96]
The question of transferring the blood testing service from the regional veterinary laboratory, Sligo, to the purpose-built brucellosis laboratory in Cork is under consideration in my Department with a view to making best use of available staff resources. No final decision has been taken in the matter.
However, the transfer of this testing to the Cork laboratory would not result in the type of delay mentioned. If the service is moved to Cork the test results of animals intended for export will, in the normal course of events, be available two working days after receipt of the samples in the laboratory.
