The Competition Authority found that, while recent legislation had moved towards modernising the veterinary profession, there were still a number of reforms needed if consumers were to benefit from competition.

The report (published June 2008) made five recommendations designed to ensure that regulations protect the health of animals and the general public, and at the same time deliver value for money to consumers. The main recommendations were that:

• The Veterinary Council should remove rules that forbid vets from advertising their prices or offering discounts. In November 2009, the Veterinary Council removed the restrictions on advertising when it issued a new version of its Code of Conduct for Vets.  
• The Department of Agriculture should consider new ways of delivering important veterinary services such as TB testing. An increasing number of vets choose to focus on pet care rather than farm work. This is happening at a time when consumers are demanding increasing information on animal herd health and higher standards of traceability. Training non-vets to provide certain routine work, such as TB testing, could have benefits in terms of freeing vets to focus on more complex tasks that only they could carry out.

A list of the recommendations not yet implemented is given below. 


Unimplemented Recommendations