Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Tuesday, 26 Mar 1996

Vol. 463 No. 3

Written Answers. - Zoonotic Diseases.

Pat Upton

Ceist:

139 Dr. Upton asked the Minister for Health the progress, if any, made in the organisation and administration of a service for obtaining and assessing information in zoonotic diseases; and the number of people in his Department engaged in this work. [6580/96]

Minister of State at the Department of Health (Mr. O'Shea)

The Food Safety Advisory Board, which I established last year, is required under its Establishment Order to organise and administer services for obtaining and assessing information on zoonotic diseases. I am aware that the board has been considering how best to deal with these issues and that it will be the subject of discussions between representatives of the board and officials of my Department in the near future.

My Department has under consideration a national disease surveillance centre. The role of the Food Safety Advisory Board in regard to zoonotic diseases will be taken into account in arriving at decisions at this centre.

Meanwhile, my Department has also been assisting the Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry in the preparation of the information to be supplied under EU Directive 92/117 on zoonotic diseases. This is now an ongoing requirement.

Several zoonotic diseases are, of course, already classified as notifiable and are reported to my Department under the Infectious Diseases Regulations, 1981, as amended. Staff from the food unit as well as medical staff from my Department deal with issues arising from zoonotic diseases as part of their areas of responsibility. In addition, a large number of staff employed by the eight health boards are also engaged on this work as part of their overall duties. It is not, therefore, possible to give precise information on the number of people engaged on this work. I want to assure the Deputy, however, that the control of these diseases will continue to be regarded as a priority.