Seanad debates

Friday, 24 July 2020

An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business

 

10:00 am

Photo of Martin ConwayMartin Conway (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I agree with my colleague, Senator Dooley. I think we would all welcome a debate on the announcement yesterday. If time could be made available next week to have such a debate, that should happen. I was looking at the schedule for next week and we seem to have a gap on Wednesday morning, so perhaps that morning would be the time to have such a debate.

As the Cathaoirleach will be aware, this is Farm Safety Week. In 2015, this House, through the Seanad Public Consultation Committee, an excellent committee of which the Cathaoirleach is a member and which has done fine work and published some great reports over the years, did a report on farm safety. I had the privilege of being the rapporteur for that report. Senators who were here at the time will remember that we had many witnesses before the committee over, I think, two days of public hearings. There was a significant engagement. In 2014, 30 people lost their lives as a result of farm accidents. Sadly, while this figure has improved, so far this year 14 people have lost their lives tragically as a result of accidents on farms. I commend the Government on taking the initiative of appointing for the first time a Minister of State with specific responsibility for farm safety. This was discussed during the deliberations on the report to which I referred and it is very welcome. I suggest to the Leader that she invite, perhaps in the autumn, the Minister of State, Deputy Heydon, whose responsibility farm safety is, before the House for a debate on farm safety. It would give him an opportunity to update us on the work he is doing on farm safety. Perhaps there are Senators who would have suggestions that would help him in the critical work he is doing.

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