In 2004, European legislation established a requirement that all veterinary medicinal products intended for use in food-producing animals should be subject to a veterinary prescription. However, a 2006 EU directive allows for an exemption and the maintenance of non-prescription status for a certain number of these products which do not represent a risk to human or animal health. This meant that the rights of what are termed responsible persons were protected and since then, they have been able to continue to prescribe and dispense veterinary medicines when classified as licensed or agricultural merchants.

That exemption is now under threat following EU plans to introduce new regulations in January 2022. This regulation, if implemented, will mean that only vets will be allowed to prescribe these products and this will have a detrimental impact as at least 3,000 jobs in the agricultural merchant sector will be lost. This will be another blow to rural counties like Laois and Offaly. There is absolutely no reason this should be allowed to happen.

The EU justification for the new rules is that only vets have enough knowledge and skill to prescribe certain antimicrobial drugs but this is patent nonsense. Thousands of highly trained and skilled agricultural merchants have been dispensing these drugs since 2006 and there is no solid evidence to suggest why this needs to change. Fortunately, there is an additional derogation clause that would permit responsible persons to continue issuing a veterinary prescription when the regulation comes into force in 2022.

Today, I want to ask the Taoiseach if he will instruct the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine and his Department to urgently adopt this derogation and, thereby, save thousands of jobs and prevent job losses in the rural economy. The sector employs and creates 10,000 jobs directly and indirectly. Organisations like the Independent Licensed Merchants Association, ILMA, and Ollie Ryan of Midland Veterinary, Tullamore, have already said that if this EU regulation is signed into law it will lead to job losses, possibly create a cartel, be extremely anti-competitive and create another burden for farming families who would also be subjected to a lot of hassle in getting their medicines. It would also bring up issues around traceability as farmers would be able to buy these products in the North of Ireland, given that it will operate a different system to us.

We have an opportunity to save thousands of rural jobs if the Government acts quickly on this issue and seeks a derogation. I hope the Taoiseach and Government will commit to doing that today and signal their intention to adopt the derogation that is already provided for in EU law. I understand agri-merchants have received letters stating that the derogation is there to be applied for by the Government.

I thank the Deputy for raising the issue. She indicated that the directive has not been finalised. There is still work to be done on the directive and I presume negotiations are still under way. I will talk to the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine. My understanding is that the Chairman of the agriculture committee intends to facilitate a discussion at the committee on this issue where inputs can be made by Deputy Nolan and other Deputies and Senators and the issue can be examined in greater detail, in particular the application or not of the additional derogation clause.

The Deputy can take it that nobody wants to create any situation overnight whereby people are rendered unemployed as a result of the application of this directive. I will discuss the matter with the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine. I take from the Deputy's contribution the significance of what is envisaged and its potential implications for many in the sector. Obviously, safety and protecting health is always paramount but she has indicated that this issue has been ongoing since 2006 under previous regulatory frameworks. An update is close to finalisation for application in 2022. As a member state, Ireland, along with other European colleagues, will be involved in finalising that. We should also facilitate inputs. I will come back to the Deputy on the matter in respect of my engagement with the Minister.

I thank the Taoiseach for his constructive response and recognition that this will lead to job losses if it is not rectified. I also want to point out that agricultural merchants want to work collaboratively and constructively on this issue. I have spoken to the owners of many agricultural merchants, including Ollie Ryan of Midland Veterinary and J. Grennan & Sons, based in Kilcormac and Rath. They want to work constructively and collaboratively but feel there is no way forward other than this derogation which they want to be finalised.

We can prevent jobs being lost in rural Ireland and can help to protect the fragile rural economy. I understand that many issues are beyond the reach of the Government, such as job losses due to the pandemic or Brexit, but this issue is within the control of Government. The problem could be very simply solved by seeking the derogation and I urge the Taoiseach, as he said, to speak to the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine and his Department about the issue.

My understanding is that a stakeholders' forum has been established in regard to this issue and that the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine is engaging with that forum. It has met twice and I understand efforts will be made to come up with a compromise and resolution of this issue. I will take the Deputy's concerns to the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine and discuss them with him. I will ask him to engage with her. As the Chairman of the agriculture committee, Deputy Jackie Cahill, has said, there will be further discussion facilitated at the committee well in advance of the deadline in order to get a reasonable resolution of this issue for all concerned.