The promotional campaign which is currently being developed by the Health and Safety Authority is very much an action-based one with a range of activities which inform the public not only of the major farm safety issues, but also of the practical actions that they can and should take to create a safer working environment in this sector. The Code of Practice on Child Safety is just one of the measures which will help to achieve this aim and I look forward to seeing it published and promoted in the coming weeks. Organisations like Teagasc work very much in tandem with the Authority and such co-operation and complementary activities are vital to getting the health and safety message down to farm level. I am also aware that Teagasc, through its representative Mr. Frank Laffey, is an active participant on the National Agricultural Task Force, which operates under the auspices of the Health and Safety Authority, and I thank you for your involvement and contribution. This is a valid and relevant theme and particularly timely in a year in which Accident Prevention has been identified as the theme of a major safety campaign recently announced by the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work.
Prevention remains a key element in tackling workplace accidents and fatalities.
Before undertaking any job around the farm it is essential that farmers identify what could cause an accident and then put in place the necessary safety measures before attempting these jobs. One of the main benefits of such an exercise is that it helps to develop an awareness of the many dangers which can exist on the farm. The Health and Safety Authority has a wide range of information material available to anyone seeking advice and the Authority also works closely with all of the major farming organisations, such as Teagasc. I would encourage all farmers to seek information from either of these sources on how best they can improve their work practices and so protect their own lives, the lives of their families, and in the long term protect their very livelihood and that of their future generations. In human terms the costs of farm accidents are, of course, enormous.