asked the Minister for Agriculture if he will allow the application by Southern Co-Operatives for permission to provide blood testing facilities for bovine brucellosis.

The matter is under active consideration in my Department and is the subject of on-going discussions with the co-operative movement on the technicalities involved. My decision will be based on the outcome of these deliberations.

Would the Minister accept that there is some degree of urgency because of the difficulties being experienced by farmers in getting their certificates back, due to the numbers going to Thorndale at the moment?

I know that there were delays last year, but steps have been taken since then to correct the problem and we have no complaints at present about undue delay in the return of certificates. The matter under discussion with this group is basically for them to conduct testing under the Rose Bengal test which, as the Deputy will probably appreciate, is not acceptable as an export test. This was only used for internal movement.

From the point of view of domestic movement would the Minister accept that the Rose Bengal test is widely accepted within the United Kingdom, the United States and many European countries?

There are advantages and disadvantages to this type of system. Discussions are still going on at a technical level and as soon as they are concluded I shall make the decision on the matter.

How long does the Minister expect these discussions to take?

I do not think that they will take too long. It is a question of the people involved visiting the Thorndale laboratory to examine in detail the proposals.