A new bill that will introduce significant changes to the regulation of veterinary medicine and the registration of fertilisers in Ireland “must be amended” to support farmers, an independent TD has warned.
Carol Nolan, the Independent TD for Laois Offaly, said there is “mounting concern” about the potential impact of the Veterinary Medicinal Products, Medicated Feed and Fertilisers Regulation Bill 2023, which is scheduled to come before the Dáil again today (Tuesday, February 14).
Deputy Nolan said that veterinary pharmacists and licenced agri-merchants have cautioned that the bill would alter current working practices in relation to the prescribing regime for anti-microbial and anti-parasitic veterinary medicines.
“The bill must be amended to ensure that farmers can maintain timely and local access to medicines in a competitive environment.
“No good will come to rural Ireland or the rural economy from creating an effective veterinary monopoly on prescribing,” the Independent TD warned.
The Irish Co-operative Organisation Society (ICOS) has previously indicated that the proposed new veterinary medicines regulations would create “a dramatic shift” in the veterinary medicines supply chain, in favour of private veterinary practitioners (PVPs) to “the detriment of co-ops and independent licenced merchants (LMs)”.
According to the ICOS livestock and environmental executive, Ray Doyle, the bill in its current form could mean that farmers “will be faced with decreased availability of anti-parasitic products and generally increased costs”.
Doyle believes there will be “serious economic effects for rural Ireland from Carndonagh to Cahirciveen”.
Deputy Nolan said under the terms of the bill, in its current form, only a “veterinary practitioner” would be legally entitled to prescribe veterinary medicinal products in Ireland which would be a significant change on current working practice.
“This bill flies in the face of the core recommendations of the Oireachtas Agriculture Committee Report on Veterinary Medicine which explicitly recommended that all efforts should be examined and reviewed with the objective of allowing the continued operation of the responsible person and pharmacist role,” she said.
The TD said she had been in contact with pharmacists who are “bewildered” by the lack of engagement from the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) on the issue.
Deputy Nolan added:
“I understand from the Irish Pharmacists Union that there has been zero engagement by the department with either merchants or veterinary pharmacists, despite the fact that approximately 900 agri-merchant outlets and 300 veterinary pharmacists will be adversely impacted if the proposed regulatory regime comes into effect.”
“The pharmacists I have spoken to are bewildered by the apparent indifference and the lack of engagement from the department. Their concerns are simply being ignored and that is completely unacceptable.”