I propose to take Questions Nos. 290, 295, 305 and 306 together.
I assume that the Deputy is referring to the pharmacy review group report. I established the pharmacy review group in November 2001 to examine the pharmacy issues raised in the OECD report on regulatory reform in Ireland, which included the use of the derogation. The group submitted its report on 31 January 2003, and the report is available on my department's website, www.doh.ie, along with reports prepared for the group by Indecon international economic consultants.
I have been examining the complex legal and other issues surrounding the group's recommendations, including those concerning Ireland's use of the derogation. Under Article 2.2 of Directive 85/433/EEC on the free movement of pharmacists, EU and EEA pharmacists who qualified in another EU or EEA state cannot own in their own right, operate or manage a pharmacy in Ireland that is less than three years old. These regulations do not preclude such pharmacists from working in a pharmacy less than three years old other than as a supervising pharmacist. The Pharmaceutical Society of Ireland is responsible for the registration of pharmacists and for recognition of non-EU pharmacy qualifications. It has reciprocal arrangements with its counterparts in Australia and New Zealand which give recognition to the pharmacy qualifications of these countries.
Deputies will appreciate that it would be inappropriate for me to comment on the report's recommendations before completion of this examination.