Denis Naughten (Longford-Roscommon, Fine Gael)
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Question 263: To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the figures for the moneys allocated to fund farm safety awareness campaigns by the Health and Safety Authority from 1997 to date; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23493/05]

Tony Killeen (Clare, Fianna Fail)
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The funding available to the Health and Safety Authority is not broken down into amounts spent or allocated to the various sectors under the authority's statutory enforcement and advisory remit. I am, therefore, unable to provide the Deputy with figures on the funding for farm safety awareness campaigns.

The Health and Safety Authority, in its programme of work for 2005, is, as in 2004, conducting a comprehensive programme of work in the agriculture sector as this sector unfortunately features all too often in the fatalities and injuries numbers. Among the particular initiatives is farm safety week, which was conducted in April, with a range of activities organised by the farm safety partnership, an advisory committee to the Health and Safety Authority. Also among the initiatives was a programme of 400 inspections which the authority carried out nationwide during that week focusing on the four key themes of farm safety week, namely: safety for the elderly on farms; completion of farm safety self assessment document; tractor maintenance; and machine guarding, particularly power take-off, PTO, shafts.

In addition to the inspection campaign, a wide range of other activities has been undertaken by the authority, including: a national radio campaign over a two-week period; a safety advertisement aired in 21 livestock marts nationwide via Farm TV over a three-month period; the distribution of farm self-assessment documents; the distribution of 90,000 farm safety brochures in the Irish Farmers Journal; and a text message alert to farmers during the week.

A major national conference on farm safety is currently being organised by the farm safety partnership.