26.—(1) The Minister may, subject to subsection (3), for the purposes of disease prevention, disease control, disease eradication and matters ancillary to those purposes, charge a levy (“animal health levy”) of the amount prescribed in regulations made by the Minister to be paid to the Minister in accordance with section 28 as respects—

(a) milk received for processing,

(b) an animal slaughtered in an establishment, registered or approved or required to be registered or approved for the purposes of an act adopted by an institution of the European Union, used for the slaughter of animals, or

(c) an animal exported live from the State.

(2) The species or type of animal to which animal health levy applies and the amount of animal health levy payable may be prescribed, from time to time, by regulations made by the Minister for the purposes of this section and different rates of animal health levy may be prescribed in respect of milk, animals generally or animals of different species.

(3) Where the Minister proposes to make regulations under this section, a draft of the regulations shall be laid before each House of the Oireachtas and the regulations shall not be made until a resolution approving of the draft has been passed by each House.

(4) Levy due and payable immediately before the repeal of the Bovine Diseases (Levies) Act 1979 may be collected, on or after such repeal takes effect, as if due under this Part.