The Department of Agriculture for Northern Ireland has said it is concerned at the revelations of the Irish Times investigation.
A Department spokesman said: "All the drugs that were purchased were prescription-only medicines and should not have been handed over in that way. If the matter is reported in Northern Ireland, it will be investigated. If the full details are given to the DHSS (Department of Health), any breaches of the law will be investigated by the RUC." He added that the report that drugs were being sold across the counter "give us great concern".
A Department of Agriculture spokesman in Dublin said it too would investigate the matter of drugs coming across the Border. Tight controls were in operation on both vets and pharmacies in the Republic.
Mr Gerald Roarty, secretary of the Donegal branch of the Irish Veterinary Union, said it came as no surprise but it horrified him that those drugs were so freely available. "We see these drugs on some farms and we have not supplied them. When we refuse to hand over drugs to some farmers because the animal is not in our care, some will tell us that they will cross the Border and buy them," he said.
"The Department of Agriculture has tightened up on pharmacies and veterinary practices in the Republic in co-operation with southern vets so the drugs are not available for abuse here. Some of the drugs that were purchased by The Irish Times are deadly and should not be in the hands of lay people," he said. "I am particularly concerned about the abuse of antibiotics and the long-term implications for public health both here and in the North." Because of scandals like angel dust and antibiotic residues, consumer confidence had fallen and as a consequence, so had beef prices. Mr Roarty hoped the Northern Ireland authorities would clamp down on the vets who had handed over the drugs. He believed such actions were contrary to the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons guide to professional conduct. The control of such drugs is covered by two EU directives, EEC 81/851 and EEC 90/676, and in the Republic by the Animal Remedies Act, 1996. Under this, illegal possession of clenbuterol can lead to a 10-year prison sentence.