Martin Heydon (Kildare South, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The Senator is dead right. I am delighted to hear her equate farm safety, well-being and mental health because there is no doubt they are deeply interconnected. The agrifood strategy for 2030, which is currently out for public consultation, reflects that. We talk about a food systems approach to agriculture in the future and the sustainability of all the systems, that is, not just environmental sustainability, which is crucial, but also economic and societal sustainability in order to allow farmers to continue to do what they are doing, make an economic return on which they can raise families, as generations before them did, and be able to do that without additional pressure.

I am also taking other measures in the Department. I secured €1 million in the most recent budget in the context of the EIP on farm safety and the second phase of those initiatives is being worked through. The accelerated capital allowance, approved by the Minister for Finance, Deputy Donohoe, in the Finance Act has also helped.

I am determined to see farm safety feature prominently in all aspects of CAP, where possible. Any engagement with farmers from the Department and the arms of the State will continue to drive home the message in order that we can change the culture and significantly reduce the level of farm fatalities and serious incidents on farms.