Pat Breen (Clare, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Senator for raising this issue. As a farmer in Cork, he is conscious of the issue of farm safety and has spoken to me about it a number of times. I have also met him at a number of farm safety demonstrations. It is an issue that is close to the heart of most people. No matter where I go, everyone knows someone who has been killed as the result of a tragic accident. These are life-changing situations that affect many family farms. As the Minister of State with responsibility for the Health and Safety Authority, HSA, one of the events that I attend each year is a memorial at which we lay a wreath for all those who have lost their lives in accidents. It is one event that I can think of quickly each year, and I recall there those who have lost their lives in farm accidents.

I encourage Senators to continue raising the issue of farm safety. I have focused closely on it in recent years. I mean it passionately when I say that I remain deeply concerned at the high numbers of fatalities in the sector. The HSA has consistently prioritised the farming sector in its annual programme of work. In addition to targeted inspection campaigns, the authority has in recent years through high-profile information campaigns and collaborative efforts with stakeholders sought to embed a crucial mindset change in the farming community to embrace farm safety and, importantly, take ownership of this critical situation. A mindset change among farmers is needed. When they get up every morning, they should think about their own safety. They should think about their families and loved ones and about how something can change their lives forever in the blink of an eye.

The HSA has a significant presence at the main agricultural events, including the National Ploughing Championships and the Tullamore Show. Such events provide invaluable opportunities to interact directly with the farming community and provide information, advice and practical demonstrations of good farming practices while highlighting the devastation caused by bad farming practices. Someone attending the ploughing championships in recent times would have seen the line of clothes, Wellington boots and shoes that have been donated to the HSA's stand there to highlight those loved ones who are no longer in their homes. It is poignant to see at first hand the names of those to whom the Wellington boots or shoes belonged, be they children or whoever.

The HSA utilises the expertise of the farm safety partnership advisory committee. The committee is drawn from the heart of the farming community itself with representatives from the Irish Farmers' Association, IFA, the Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers Association, ICMSA, Macra na Feirme and other organisations such as Teagasc and the Farm Relief Services Network.

Arising out of the recent farm safety task force that I convened, work is being finalised on the proposed regulations to make the wearing of appropriate protective head gear mandatory when using all-terrain vehicles, ATVs, quad bikes and so on at work. This has the potential to contribute to improved behaviour, prevent life-changing injuries and save lives. Let us consider the statistics for those who have died in farm accidents. They involve older farmers who are probably not used to modern machinery on their farms, and children. People also die after falling from heights. They climb roof sheds and do not realise how dangerous that is. We have witnessed many such incidents in recent times. Senator Lombard might recall how members of the same family died in Northern Ireland a number of years ago from inhaling slurry tank gas. It devastated that family, but it created an awareness in farmers' mindset about the dangers of slurry spreading. We saw a reduction afterwards, but it took that terrible accident to get into their heads the dangers of inhaling this invisible gas.

As a good farmer, Senator Lombard will be well aware that farming is unique in several respects, not least because it predominately comprises self-employed and self-supervised people who often work alone. The farm is linked to the family home and family life and several generations can live and work on farms. That is a factor in the number of elderly farmers' deaths, with many old and young people exposed to workplace risks.

Notwithstanding all the challenges, I have noted the Senator's comments on VAT for our next meeting with the HSA on this subject. I am working closely with the farming organisations and the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Deputy Creed. We need to drive the message about farm safety home and continue to work closely with the farming community to ensure that we can bring lasting change and improvement to the family farm.