Sandra, who is a member of the Enterprise, Trade & Investment committee said,
“It cannot be denied that Farming is a dangerous job, in fact it is now regarded as one of the most hazardous work sectors. Last year twelve people lost their lives in farm-related incidents, several of which occurred within the Mid Ulster constituency. Families are still grieving the loss of these loved ones and communities still bear the scars of such tragedies. It is imperative that decisive action is taken in order to reduce the number of farm-related fatalities and injuries and the Farm Safety Partnership is a step in that direction.
The Partnership serves to place the Health and Safety Executive for Northern Ireland, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (DARD) and the Ulster Farmers’ Union (UFU) in a cooperative alliance. By and large farm-related deaths are preventable and it is vitally important that everyone who is involved with, or has influence on, the agricultural community, works together to raise awareness of the need to be more safety conscious and take precaution every day to ensure the safety of all involved.
The action plan outlined by this Partnership provides a practical approach to an impractical issue. And I gladly welcome the commitment of the agricultural industries to prevent further deaths on our farms; our efforts in this area must not stop until the number of fatalities is erased.”