I move:
That Seanad Éireann hereby confirms the Veterinary Surgeons Order, 1972.
Veterinary Surgeons Order, 1972: Motion.
The order in question was made by the Government on 21st January, 1972, under section 5 of the Veterinary Council, the statutory purpose is to provide for the enlargement of the membership of the Veterinary Council, the statutory governing body of the veterinary profession, on the basis of representations made by that council.
The existing council of ten members, constituted under the Veterinary Surgeons Order, 1954, made by the Government, comprises seven elected members elected by the profession, one member appointed by the Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries and two members appointed by the two universities concerned, that is, the National University of Ireland and the University of Dublin. When seeking to have this membership enlarged, the council proposed that the number of elected members be increased from seven to 12, which, along with the existing three appointed members, would give a total new membership of 15.
The grounds for increasing the membership, as put forward by the council, are that there has, since 1954 when the present council was constituted, been a substantial expansion in professional membership; that this expansion, accompanied by an expansion in the "institutional side" of veterinary practice, has resulted not only in an increased volume of work but also in entirely new forms of problems and cases coming before the council; and that real difficulties are at times experienced in setting up, when necessary, a committee of the council to deal with particular disciplinary matters. On consideration of the circumstances, the Government were satisfied that the membership of the council needs to be enlarged as proposed and so made the present order accordingly.
The order, as I have already mentioned, was made at the wish of the Veterinary Council and to meet a real need due to changed circumstances. I can confidently recommend it to the House for confirmation.
We can all agree with the Veterinary Surgeons Order, 1972. The veterinary profession are giving a tremendous service to the farming community. They have organised themselves on the basis of joint practices to give an 24-hour, seven days a week service at quite a reasonable cost.
There are a few points which have been agitating the profession over the past years. The Department of Agriculture could be more willing perhaps to meet the veterinary surgeons on the TB eradication scheme and on the new problems which will arise when the brucellosis eradication scheme is extended. There is very good co-operation between the members of this profession, the farming community and the Department. This speaks well for the veterinary surgeons. The Parliamentary Secretary might ask his colleague, the Minister for Finance, to look into the difficulties experienced by some veterinary officers in regard to their income tax. It is unfair that they should be forced to pay income tax on sums they have not collected from the farmers. The Department should remember that we still have throughout much of the country a system whereby the farming community pay once or twice a year. The veterinary profession still depends on an annual payment from the farmers.
Having made his point I suggest that the Senator comes back to the order.
There are a few other points I could make but we welcome the order.
Question put and agreed to.