Veterinary Council of Ireland

Contact: Mr Michael Fenlon

Introduction

The national herd includes all animals such as companion, performance, and food animals. The latter are valued at approximately £4,500 million with total annual output at £2,000 million [1996]. Protecting the health and welfare of the livestock and animal derived food industry and maximising its good name are of critical importance to the veterinary profession. Similarly, they are critical issues to Ireland where agriculture and food contributes substantially to gross domestic product and total exports. Protecting the national herd from the introduction of exotic disease, especially scheduled disease, is particularly important. The veterinary profession, in co-operation with animal owners, proudly holds the health and welfare of the national herd under its professional care. The Veterinary Council is statutorily responsible for the veterinary profession, which consists of approximately 2000 registered members, including veterinary surgeons in private and public practice, academic and research work, and commercial employment.

Veterinary Surgeon Laws and the Public Interest

The Veterinary Council’s responsibility for the veterinary profession has been prescribed over the years by an ever-extending body of law and scientific and technological development, which determine the Registration, Regulation and Education functions of Council. This body of law includes:

• Veterinary Surgeons Acts : 1881, 1900, 1920, 1931, 1952, 1960,
• Statutory Instruments Nos. 85 of 1954 and 66 of 1988,
• many EU Directives, Regulations and Statutory Instruments affecting the qualification and movement of veterinarians within the EU,
• animal welfare, animal diseases, animal remedies, consumer legislation, competition legislation, and environmental legislation ,
• some High Court decisions – which have contributed case law.

These laws, in common with all laws, have been put in place to serve the public interest. Where there is public interest, there are public expectations and, in an imperfect system, there are threats to their realisation.

Council Business

Consequently, since it is required to serve the public interest by regulating the profession, the Veterinary Council is required;

• to define the “public interest” periodically, in order to be clear and up-to-date about its brief,
• to plan strategically, e.g. to identify expectations and threats, in order to remain relevant in a changing environment across the spectrum of work that the veterinary profession encompasses, [such as, production including animal health and welfare, disease control including zoonoses, clinical practice, and such as processing, including ante-mortem inspection, post-mortem examination, product evaluation for adulterants, residue and pathogens, animal waste disposal and so forth], with all of this work impacting on animals, on producers, on processors, on consumers, on veterinary surgeons themselves, on the environment and on the economy, across an industry that is heavily subsidised or supported by public funds,
• to operate inclusively in the public interest, and not be exclusively concerned with any particular sector or group, whether producers, or processors, or veterinary surgeons, or consumers, etc., and
• accordingly, to give meaningful operational effect to this body of law and best scientific and professional practice.

The Public Interest and the Veterinary Profession

The public interest in relation to the veterinary profession is realised through:

• Health protection of the national herd by ensuring effective control of disease, including common, zoonotic, and exotic disease,
• Satisfactory animal welfare and environmentally sound production and processing systems,
• Assuring high quality and safe food,
• Efficient and effective private and public veterinary services,
• Economic competitiveness of livestock and livestock product at home or abroad.

Threats and Expectations relating to Veterinary in the Public Interest

Health protection of the national herd and effective control of disease

Threats: In relation to protection of the national herd and effective control of animal and zoonotic disease the main veterinary related threats are from;

• the introduction of seriously damaging disease, e.g. Foot and Mouth disease, Classical Swine Fever, Rabies, Avian Influenza, Equine Infectious Anaemia
• the loss of export status especially to elite markets,
• customer and consumer resistance to real or perceived “substandard” quality livestock and product.

Expectations: The public expects that all animals, but particularly an agri-food industry that in 1997 was worth 13.2 % of total exports, 14.2% of gross domestic product and 13.4% of total employment, will be protected;

• through effective clinical practice,
• through surveillance and control of disease, especially zoonotic and exotic disease,
• through up-to-date and effective production, hygienic, husbandry and welfare practices,
• by a veterinary profession objectively determined as being well structured and well developed.

Satisfactory animal welfare and environmentally sound production, processing, and animal waste disposal systems

Threats: The main factors that compromise animal welfare and the environment relate mainly to matters, such as, the;

• EU policy that links income to volume rather than quality output, for example, headage payments, slaughter premia, export refunds,
• pursuit of economies of scale and maximised returns based on low cost inputs and high volume output,
• failure to realise that stockpiling of rendered animal waste, [July 1999 at 50,000 tonnes] with decreasing export opportunities, is a commercial and environmental cul-de-sac,
• failure of decision makers to realise that incineration is appropriate for disposal of animal waste within Ireland. That is incineration using best technology with near zero toxic emissions, continuous monitoring and operating to stringent EU and national regulations can be a clean industry.

Expectations: The informed public has significantly different expectations and is increasingly insistent;

• that all animal husbandry practices will be welfare friendly, environmentally sound, and sustainable,
• that there will be compliance with animal welfare and environment directives and regulations, such as, caging, tethering, transportation,
• that, further to BSE and new variant CJD, any worthwhile system for the destructive disposal of fallen animals and hazardous animal waste is a better option that recycling into the food chain,
• that such practices will be open to inspection and auditing,
• that the veterinary profession should have a significant input as well as a leader role in many of these developments.

Assured quality and safety of food

Threats: In relation to quality and safety of food, the public has expressed serious concerns in regard to;

• the presence of pathogens in animal food products, and the use of adulterants or illegal growth promoters in livestock production,
• the failure of some to comply with relevant statutes, such as, Animal Remedies Regulations [ARR], Specified Bovine Offal Regulations [SBO], Specified Risk Material [SRM],
• the failure of some local authorities to appoint county veterinary officers,
• any industry practices that are suggestive of disregard for, or even exploitation of, the consumer,
• the vacillation of decision makers further to vehement contradictory opinions issuing from governments and special interest groups, such as, producers, lobbyists, pressure groups, sections of the media regarding what constitutes unsafe food, unacceptable dietary formulations, growth promoters, inclusions, additives, modifications, and so forth.

Expectations: Consumers have expectations in regard to safe and wholesome food. In support of these expectations;

• regulations are in place controlling specific diseases, animal remedies, residue levels, cleanliness of animals entering factories, exclusion of certain animal products from the food chain, e.g. ARR, SBO, SRM,
• the Food Safety Authority of Ireland, which is objectively pro-consumer, is established,
• the EU is in the process of re-drafting all Directives dealing with food into one Directive,
• the Department of Agriculture and Food [DAF] is advancing a statutory beef assurance scheme,
• the public require that all participants in the food chain, from production to consumption, will operate and comply with proper practice ,
• the establishment of an FDA-like Agency, [of absolute independence, of scientific rigour, and independent budgeting], would give definitive public assurance regarding the safety and quality of foods. [Will the FSAI and /or the proposed new EU Food Authority assume this function?].

Efficient and effective private and public veterinary services

Threats: In relation to efficient and effective private and public veterinary services the main threats arise for both economic and professional reasons because;

• for the producer / processor to maximise profits, as price levels are largely capped at EU level, the cost of inputs, which includes veterinary services, being the only variable, must be cut-back,
• World Trade Organisation price trends have a downward expectation,
• the increasing tendency of a reduction in licensed animal remedies, sacrificing animal welfare against the consumer and commercial interests,
• veterinary “omnicompetence for life at graduation”, although acknowledged as untenable, remains a registrable practice,
• veterinary practice facilities and continuing professional development are not subject to objective peer scrutiny and validation.

Expectations: Not withstanding the economic projections, the public as users of veterinary services have expectations of objectively assured high standard private and public veterinary services by;

• the operating of effective animal heath, welfare and disease control programmes both at farm and national level,
• the application of effective clinical practice using modern technology, up-to-date facilities and educational standards in diagnosis, disease control, production methods, and the continued availability of appropriate licensed animal remedies,
• the Council establishing objectively assured schemes for Continuing Professional Development and Practice Accreditation.

Economic competitiveness of livestock and livestock product

Threats: In relation to the economic competitiveness of livestock and livestock product, particularly international competitiveness since Ireland exports 80% of livestock / product, the main veterinary threats to competitiveness include;

• any questions or doubts regarding the disease status of the livestock and livestock products,
• unsecured quality and safety of the product for the consumer,
• any perception that some of the players in the industry [producers, veterinary surgeons, processors, transporters, etc.], are either under skilled, under resourced, under compliant, or perhaps exploitative of the customer at home and abroad,
• the non-availability of a statutory based traceable system for animals and animal derived food products that are quality and safety assured through production and processing systems,
• less than high standard veterinary professional services and practices in the exporting country,
• the cost to the importing country of eradicating new disease or re-eradicating a disease on which considerable exchequer resources have already been successfully committed.

Expectations: The public expectation is that, as Ireland is a relatively high cost economy, competitiveness, particularly access to elite markets, can only be sustained by the production of premium and safe product from “stable to table”. In relation to veterinary matters, this exercise is a function of;

• satisfactory production systems,
• pristine processing systems,
• high standard veterinary public and private services,
• appropriate data generated and applied on the presence and level of specific disease,
• “stable to table” traceability, safety and quality validation, with post processing, pre-distribution and pre-export random batch testing of the food chain, with product appropriately labelled,
• correct professional and commercial certification.

The Work and Strategic Relevance of the Veterinary Council

Further to this type of analysis, the Council has addressed the following work programme and it is hoped that these initiatives will ensure the strategic development and relevance of the profession and will give public assurance in respect of the issues raised above which are within the remit of the Council:

1. A report “Future Directions of the Veterinary Profession in Ireland” [Delany Report] commissioned by Council following consultation with the veterinary representative bodies. This report, which contained recommendations for the establishment of continuing professional development, specialisation, practice grading, and a referral system, has been widely considered and accepted by the veterinary profession.
2. Voluntary schemes for Continuing Professional Development and Practice Accreditation have been initiated.
3. Further to Visitation of the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, the Visitors Report has been submitted to the relevant authorities. This Visitation found that the current poor facilities and underfunding were having a negative impact on the quality of undergraduate education and consequently raised serious concerns about the quality of veterinary graduate into the new millennium. Council is pleased to record that Government has recently announced financing of a new Faculty of Veterinary Medicine at the UCD campus.
4. The current Veterinary Surgeons Acts have become both defective and deficient over time. Discussions with DAF regarding headings for a new Veterinary Surgeons Bill are currently being held to update legislation and to legally formalise quality innovations, such as, continuing professional development, specialisation, practice grading and accreditation, referral, as well as extending sanctions for professional misconduct.
5. Veterinary 2000; a programme of development into the millennium has been agreed with the veterinary representative bodies, including (i) consumer / user issues, (ii) continuing education, and (iii) practice issues.
6. The Guide to Professional Behaviour has been radically revised and circulated to registered veterinary surgeons.
7. A supplemental register/list has been established of IRCA [International Register of Certified Auditors] qualified veterinary auditors available to audit animal health and welfare, environmental, production and processing practices towards exacting and objective professional and commercial certification.
8. ISO9000 accreditation has been achieved at Council; hopefully giving leadership to the profession through the adoption of objectively determined higher standards at a time when Council as the regulatory body for the veterinary profession is seeking increased registrable standards in continuing professional development and practice organisation from its registered members.

Conclusion

The Veterinary Council compliments the Minister on establishing this independent Agri Food 2010 Committee. The Council is confident that this Committee will realise a strategy for the development of Irish agriculture that ensures that it will adequately meet and successfully match the changes and challenges ahead. The Council welcomes the invitation to make this submission to the Agri Food 2010 Committee and looks forward to operating relevant measures in support of findings and recommendations of the Committee towards the strategic development of Irish agriculture over the next decade.

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