Paul Daly (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome our witnesses. I have been very active in the area of farm safety. Some colleagues will be aware that I have a Bill in the system. It is well buried but it has not gone away. It provides for establishing a farm safety agency in the same way as we have a road safety agency. I do think that is the way to go but we will not waste any time on that today. To Ms Rohan, I cannot say enough about what you do. I knew Liam, as you know, go ndéanfaidh Dia trócaire ar a anam uasal. We see ourselves in the preventative role and when accidents happen, we say it is another statistic, one that got away on us and we are not doing our job. We move on to still try to prevent future accidents. You have taken up the mantle that support is needed for people who have suffered accidents. I have no question but want to compliment the great work you do. The annual remembrance service alone is very moving.

Myself and Ms Jordan have done a bit of trucking in the past as well. I welcome her here. AgriKids is a major part of the solution going forward. It is education. No matter what problems are thrown at us, education is often given as the solution. If we teach children the awareness, they will teach Mammy, Daddy and the grandparents. It is no more than with smoking and I am a former smoker myself. The kids police it, if someone lights up a cigarette, if you get them anti-smoking. It is the very same with farm safety. If they see the dangers, they will highlight them to Mammy, Daddy, Granny and Grandfather. What AgriKids is doing is a major part of what needs to be done. Ms Jordan mentioned the money. I highlighted in the Seanad this morning that Farm Safety Week is the week after next but it is the wrong time of year. It should take place at the start of the summer holidays, the start of the busy season, not coming in the middle of it. As was said already, farmers are flat out. I feel the timing of Farm Safety Week is wrong. Maybe the witnesses would comment on that a little bit more. Everyone might comment on the role the media has to play in this. I do not think they play enough of a role.

I have one question for FBD. There was a lot of talk in the last few weeks about the RSA introducing mandatory training for under-16s for tractor driving. How does that fit in with insurance? FBD would not insure someone to drive a car without training. Is there a policy or a feeling on the direction we should go for that mandatory training for under-16s who are stepping onto these enormous machines with no official training?