On Tuesday 20th April 2010, was published in BOE (Official Spanish Bulletin) in its number 95 Sec. I. page. 34669, the order PRE/962/2010, of 15 April, for the Ministry of Presidency, whence it is regulated the Committee about availability of veterinarian drugs, where can be textually read:

“The royal Decree 1246/2008, of 18 July, for the Regulation of the proceedings of authorisation, registration and pharmacovigilance of veterinary drugs, manufactured industrially, created a third additional disposition, the Committee of veterinary drugs availability, establishing at the same time, the need to develop its composition, functions and operation through a ministerial order. This Committee was created to promote the availability of drugs for all animal productive species such as pets, especially though measures to help and impulse the research, experimentation, develop, registration and marketing of the drug.”

In the 4th article referring to composition can be read:

“ 3rd, by the side of the industrial sector, two members designated by the Ministry of Health and Social Policy, after proposed by the pharmacist industry.

7th a member from the Spanish Technology Platform in Animal Health (Vet+i) named by the entitled of the Ministry of Health and Social Policy and proposed by it)

About the private origin of the member from point 3, there is no doubt. But was Vet+i, means? In the own texts of the platform can be found textually: “

“Vet+i aspires this multidisciplinary forum to became a dynamic and efficient instrument that will help contact and discussion, to achieve its main objective: the research in animal health made in Spain could be transferable and helps and accelerates the development and marketing of useful tools for the detection and control of diseases” and who is the President of Vet+i? The same person being the President of Veterindustria.

So it is to include a third private member in this official Committee.

From Veterinaria Digital we wonder:

A. A platform whose objective is to accelerate development and marketing of tools for the detection and control of diseases, it is reagents for diagnosis, vaccines and drugs, must participate in an official committee whose objective is the registration of the products?

B. Two members of the pharmaceutical industry, it means with private interests in the manufacturing and marketing of products for veterinary use, must participate in an official committee whose objective is to promote registration and marketing of the products?

C. Is it possible that these members, with private interests, can affect the decisions of the committee, helping the companies included in Veterindustria and Vet+i? Is it possible these decisions can affect the free competence of the products for veterinary use market?

If we analyse new aspects of this official committee, we can read textually, referring to its funding:” Article 6. Funding The operation of the committee will not suppose public spending”

In Veterinaria Digital, we follow wondering:

E. How is it possible that the actions to help, impulse and support research, experimentation, development, registration and marketing, the main objectives of the committee, are done without public spending?

F. Is it possible that the funds come from the private sector joined in this committee?

G. And finally, is it possible that there is a direct relation between this private funding and the obtaining of registrations and authorisation of commercialising of products for veterinary use?

It would be healthy for the transparency of the Ministry of Health to clarify these points, for what we make available this transparency gallery to clarify the denounced questions.