Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank Deputy Griffin for raising this important matter. He is aware that it is an area on which the Minister of State, Deputy Martin Heydon, has done significant work since his appointment two years ago.

Farm safety is a major issue and farming continues to be the most dangerous occupation in terms of fatalities in the workplace. Fatal incidents on farms account for just over two in five of all workplace fatal incidents. Unfortunately, this year to date, there have been 12 fatalities on farms.

Data from the Teagasc national farm survey, NFS, also reveal that there are approximately 4,500 non-fatal incidents each year on farms - this is a large number - and some of them result in life-changing injuries.

The Government has prioritised farm safety, health and well-being. This is reflected in the work of the Minister of State, Deputy Heydon, and the fact that the Government has assigned him specific responsibility for farm safety as part of his ministerial portfolio. He has done excellent work in this space and is playing a key role in driving a step change in our approach to farm safety.

The Department implemented a series of farm safety, health and well-being initiatives over the course of this year, utilising dedicated funding of €2.25 million. These initiatives include capital support to make farms safer, support for education and awareness by promoting farm safety practices and risk awareness to encourage behavioural change around farm safety from a young age, and support for those who have been impacted by fatal and non-fatal incidents. The measures include the investment of €1.5 million in agricultural machinery and equine simulators for use in agricultural colleges; the Agri Aware farm safe schools initiative, in which 450 primary schools and 19,500 pupils participated this year; the acceleration of wear and tear allowances for farm safety equipment; farm safety training; and joint promotional farm safety campaigns with the Health and Safety Authority, HSA.

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