Vol. 574 No. 5
158 Mr. Connaughton asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food the reason licensed merchants will not be allowed in future to handle such items as sheep, black lead, foot rot and a whole host of other vaccines; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27713/03]
Since licences in respect of animal vaccines which had been granted under the Therapeutic Substances Act 1932 no longer met current scientific or EU legislative requirements, it was necessary to review all such licences on an individual basis. Under the review, which has been ongoing since 1999, the Irish Medicines Board carries out the detailed examination of application dossiers submitted by sponsoring companies. On this basis, the board makes a recommendation to me for a final decision on the grant or otherwise of a licence and on the conditions, including route of supply, accompanying such licence.
In terms of designating routes of supply for individual vaccines, my Department does not have a general approach which would as a matter of policy necessarily exclude any of the categories provided for under the Animal Remedies Regulations 1996. Rather, the decision is taken on the basis of the characteristics of each individual product taking account of the relevant recommendation of the Irish Medicines Board and the objective criteria laid down in regulation 13 of the Animal Remedies Regulations 1996.
