Dáil Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 21 Nov 2001

Vol. 544 No. 4

Written Answers. - Animal Medicines.

Paul Connaughton

Question:

175 Mr. Connaughton asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Rural Development his views on whether the Irish Medicines Board report advocating that intramammaries should be prescription only medicines; if his attention has been drawn to the fact that there are no known human health or food safety implications in allowing the present system to continue; if his attention has further been drawn to the fact that Ireland has the highest possible control degree on the application of animal medicines in the EU; if his attention has further been drawn to the case of dairy farmers that inclusion of intramammaries as prescription only medicines is unworkable; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29189/01]

Minister for Agriculture, Food and Rural Development (Mr. Walsh):

As I informed the House on 23 October last, I have decided to accept the recommendation made to me by the Irish Medicines Board that intramammary antibiotic medicines should be brought under prescription control, thus bringing them into line with other antibiotic veterinary medicines on the Irish market in terms of designated route of supply.

In accepting the IMB report, I have had due regard to scientific views in the report in relation to antibiotic resistance which, as the Deputy will be aware, is a major issue both in human and animal health terms. I had also to take account, not only of current stated EU policy to the effect that all antibiotic medicines should be subject to veterinary prescription, but also that of major international bodies such as the WHO and the OIE. Aside from the primary concerns about human and animal health, I ask the Deputy to reflect on whether the interests of our export-orientated agriculture and food industries would be best served in the longer term by having an important category of antibiotic treatment subject to a regime of control which is out of line with that in operation in almost every other member state of the EU.

As regards the stance taken by the IMB, it needs to be pointed out that the IMB, in its role as competent authority, could have exercised its power to redesignate intramammaries as "prescription only", thus making them subject to the existing legislative requirements. At the same time, the IMB report recognises the difficulties which would arise in applying the current prescription rules in Irish legislation to intramammaries. Accordingly, my Department is now engaged in considering what changes to existing legislation will be necessary in order to have an effective and workable prescription regime applying to intramammaries. In this context, my Department has sought the views and suggestions of stakeholders on the optimum arrangements which might apply. Some stakeholders have already responded, and I expect this process to be completed within the coming weeks. In formulating its proposals, my Department will not alone have regard to the views expressed by stakeholders, within the context of putting in place a suitable prescription regime, but will also have due regard to arrangements in operation in other member states of the EU where prescription regimes currently apply to intramammaries.