Carol Nolan: Prescription-Only Rule 'Outrageous' for Rural Ireland

I'd just like to begin by saying that I just think it's outrageous and reckless that you're trying to pursue such an agenda. I mean, the Department of Agriculture should be standing up for farmers and rural Ireland. Rural Ireland is on its knees. I don't know if any of you are from rural Ireland, but I can assure you the businesses there are struggling to keep workers on their payroll and farmers cannot take any more financial burden. And I just think it's absolutely reckless. I think you need to go back, as was pointed out by Deputy Fitzmaurice, I support that view. You need to go back to the drawing board and work with everybody on this to protect jobs, protect rural Ireland and not put another burden on farmers. There was a point made there earlier in relation to the derogation. It's my understanding this derogation can be sought and should have been sought in 2019. But it was stated there earlier that there was a legal reason or legal opinion on this derogation. Could I be made aware of that legal opinion or what was stopping the derogation? And did that prevent you seeking it in 2019? And my next question is, the EU have confirmed in a written reply to vets their rights to prescribe as follows. As a rule, Regulation EU 2019-6 gives a veterinarian exclusive right to prescribe veterinary medicines. However, Regulation EU 2019-6 provides for a derogation to that general rule in its Article 1054. This contradicts the Department's assertion that only vets can write prescriptions and how do you respond to this? And the next thing I want to say to you is and ask you, it is my understanding that if the regulations are brought in by the Department of Agriculture, they'll wreck rural Ireland and they'll overburden farmers and they'll cause job losses. But they'll also be in breach of EU directive 2019-633. And could I have your feedback on this? Because it's very, very serious that you're being so reckless with this. I can't understand it. I really, I really, I'm beyond belief. And I just want to point out that farmers have a very good relationship with their agri merchants. It's always worked well. So if it's not broken, why fix it? In terms of the examples of the medicines, there's considerable research out there, Chagas recently published a paper. The white drenches in particular, there's very high levels of resistance of those in sheep. There's also levels of resistance to the clear drenches or the clear treatments, which are the ivermectins. There's also indications of resistance up to 60% to levomazole, which is the yellow drench. So we've five classes of medicines, and they're all based on colour, if you like. But they have shown resistance has developed within seven to eight years of these products coming onto the market. Because the parasites want to survive, so they develop this resistance to combat the medicines. So there is evidence of resistance to those three classes in particular, the white, the yellow, and the ivermectin family of treatments. And the level of resistance is frightening out there. And we only have to look to the research to find that. And Chagas have done extensive research nationwide on this, on the dairy to beef farms. And they found levels of resistance increasing. They did a study in 2015, and they went back in 2019. And the resistance had jumped from 60% to 100%, in particular with the white drenches. So it's readily available information out there. And just to go back to your query about the financial burden on the farmer. And of course we are extremely concerned and aware of this impending change and burden on the farmer. But there is also the perspective that if you use the right medicine, if you like, that your animals won't suffer. They won't get scoured. They will thrive better. So they will finish quicker, if you like. So that, you know, there is a cost benefit to the farmer and to everybody if we use them based on best practice. And this best practice will be adopted and developed through the stakeholder group. It will be adopted by vets and by all the key stakeholders and for farmers. There will be guidance developed for everybody to improve the use of these products in the sector, to improve the picture of the resistance that's out there. So that is where we're trying to get to. And the end result of that will be less of a financial burden on the farmer. And the other thing I just wanted to come back on is, because it becomes a prescription only medicine, the vet does not have to administer that medicine. The vet does not have to go onto the farm every time a farmer needs the medicine. A prescription is issued as a one off and then the farmer is free to go wherever they so choose to get that medicine. And you will be aware that in most cases it's not an immediate treatment. It is prescribed over the period, over the grazing period. So you get your prescription day one. You can go to your licensed merchant whenever you need that product. You are not duty bound to buy it all from the vet at that time. But there is no, the department has never had it of the view that the vet must administer this treatment. Never. This was never in our view because we understand the cost, we understand the practicalities of getting a vet on farm. So prescription only medicine does not mean the vet administers the medicine. That's it. Ms. Gareth. You