We read in the newspapers this morning of the sad news of apparent confirmation of a young man in a Dublin hospital having contracted variant CJD. Our thoughts and empathy should be with him and his family.

The details of how this incident occurred remain to be fully investigated. It appears, however, from medical reports and medical sources that the young man concerned did not contract variant CJD by way of blood transfusion or operation. I understand that he has not lived abroad. A case like this which, unfortunately, is the first of its kind here, will give rise to concerns among members of the public about public health issues. From that perspective, will the Taoiseach outline what steps the Government is taking and what inquiries it is making about this incident to ensure that public health fears, as a consequence of this most unfortunate case, can be properly allayed?

I join Deputy Kenny in expressing regret that the diagnosis of a young male patient in a Dublin hospital confirms that he is suffering from variant CJD. Our thoughts and prayers are with the patient, his family and friends who are attempting to cope with this difficult situation. I thank all those who respected the privacy of the patient and his family in recent weeks. I appreciate the effort undertaken by everybody in that respect.

In reply to Deputy Kenny's question, the Tánaiste was made aware of this potential case of variant CJD on 21 October last. While respecting the privacy and confidentiality of the patient, she met with and was briefed by the chief medical officer, Dr. Jim Kiely, and the chairman of the national CJD advisory committee, Professor William Hall, on the potential broader public health implications that may arise from this case, as Deputy Kenny rightly pointed out. She was assured that the measures in place to protect public health, particularly in regard to the protection of blood supply, are in accordance with best international practice. There are no issues in regard to blood supply arising from this specific case, as the patient has never donated or received blood and the cause of the infection is not linked to an operation.

The CJD advisory board will continue to monitor all developments nationally and internationally and, along with the Department's chief medical officer, to advise the Tánaiste on any relevant developments. It is understood, as Deputy Kenny said, that the person in the suspected case had not lived abroad. The hospital authorities have ruled out that this condition was caused by a blood product. If variant CJD is eventually confirmed in this case, which is now known to be the position, this would be the first indigenous case. The other person who had this condition had lived in England for a long period, as people will recall. It has been formally confirmed that variant CJD is caused by the consumption of beef. This is believed to be the cause of the majority of the just fewer than 150 such cases in the UK and a number of other cases worldwide.

The worrying issue about this case, even though all the protections recommended were taken here with a major effort having been made from 1996-97 onwards, is that the incubation period for variant CJD is not known, but it is believed to extend for many years. It is difficult to find out what is the exact position on that, but people in this area say it is from ten to 15 years, although that is not hardened up by many people in this area, but that is what the Food Safety Authority of Ireland indicates. There is a possibility that the man concerned became infected prior to the introduction of the more rigorous food safety controls, in particular the removal of the risk materials from the food chain, which was introduced in respect of UK imports eight years ago.

From 1996 onwards, and in advance of their adoption elsewhere, rigorous controls have been applied here to protect consumers and to eradicate BSE. These controls are audited by the FSAI and the EU Food and Veterinary Office. Ireland's controls are deemed to be optimal and stable from 1998 under the geographical assessment which was published. There have been many cases in the USA. The Department is continuing to take all the necessary precautions, both agricultural and on the BSE side. In this case, the CJD advisory group and the FSAI have indicated that there should not be a need for public concern about the safety of Irish beef. In particular, the FSAI said that it is confident that, based on the current controls, consumers of Irish beef are not exposed to BSE infective agent. That is its most recent assessment on this issue.

I thank the Taoiseach for his reply and indicating that the FSAI and the CJD advisory board will continue to closely monitor this position. It is important the Taoiseach reiterated that with regard to concerns from a public health perspective, the Government is happy there is no real fear here.

I note that the medical reports and medical sources seem to indicate that as the young man did not contract this disease from a blood transfusion or from an operation, it is almost certain he contracted it from eating infected beef. The beef sector is critical to our economy and to the livelihoods of many thousands of people. If this is the case, is it clear from what source that beef may have come? It is critical to maintain the high standards of integrity and credibility in the Irish beef sector by an open and transparent process. I expect the Department of Agriculture and Food, from the beef sector element of this unfortunate circumstance, to see to it that those highest standards apply. When investigations, inquiries and the process of determining how this happened, if that is possible, are complete I hope that information will be made known so that everyone understands the importance of the credibility of the beef sector and of the application of the most rigorous standards here to maintain public confidence in our beef.

I assure Deputy Kenny of that. With regard to BSE, all of the pressures, controls and programmes will continue. We have had several cases over the years. The number is small compared with other countries and has reduced dramatically. Last year the number of cases was reduced by 46% and this year by 30%. Because of the incubation period of the disease, animals born before 1996-97 are principally affected.

The CJD advisory board will continue and will monitor all developments in the current case. The board will also step up its efforts to monitor developments internationally and, particularly, in the United Kingdom.

We introduced controls prior to all other EU countries. The Department of Agriculture and Food makes sure these procedures are in place and the Food Safety Authority of Ireland is happy with these measures. Nevertheless, one cannot be too careful and I have no doubt the history of this case will be examined carefully because variant CJD is an extremely difficult disease.