Minister of State for farm safety Martin Heydon has announced the reopening of the National Farm Safety Measure.
The National Farm Safety Measure 2024 will provide a financial contribution to participating farmers covering 60% of the eligible cost of power take off (PTO) shaft covers.
Over the past decade (2014 – 2023), farm vehicles and machinery accounted for over half of all fatalities on farms, and entanglement in PTO shafts has caused fatalities and life-changing injuries on Irish farms.
The Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005 places a legal obligation on farmers to ensure that plant and machinery are safe and without risk to health.
The measure will be funded from the national exchequer, and will be open from today (Wednesday, July 24) to November 1 next, on the Agfood portal.
The maximum amount of aid under the measure is for four PTO shaft covers. The grant aid will be at a rate of 60%, subject to a maximum eligible cost of €100 per PTO shaft cover.
Farmers who applied for grant aid under the same measure in 2023 are also eligible for the 2024 measure.
Launching the measure during Farm Safety Week 2024, Minister Heydon said: “I am reopening the National Farm Safety Measure to help protect farmers and everyone involved in operating PTO-powered equipment from serious and fatal injuries.
“This measure will support farmers in the purchase of new PTO shaft covers. Unsafe practices must be addressed and through this measure I am raising awareness of the risks posed by operating PTO-powered machinery that has defective or missing PTO shaft covers”.
The minister added: “Farmers are required to maintain a Farm Safety Code of Practice risk assessment… I am urging farmers to review their farm safety risk assessment and identify any hazards on the farm, including defective or damaged PTO shaft covers.
“There are unique hazards attached to farming, but by identifying and putting steps in place…we can reduce the risks on farm,” Minister Heydon added.
Farm Safety Week
Farmers have been urged to “make safety a priority” during Farm Safety Week, which is organised by the Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA) and takes place this week.
Chair of the IFA Farm Family and Social Affairs committee, Teresa Roche, said that the rate of farm accidents and fatalities is currently “too high” in Ireland.
“We need to make safety a number one priority. Farm work can be hazardous, but many accidents are preventable,” Roche said.
As part of the initiative, the Road Safety Authority (RSA) and the Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA) are appealing to motorists to take extra care as the number of tractors, trailers and other farm machinery using the roads increases during the summer season.
The RSA and the IFA are this week running a campaign aimed at raising awareness of the increased numbers of farm machinery on the roads.
Both organisations want farming contractors and other drivers to be mindful of other road users and to always be on the lookout for vulnerable road users such as cyclists and pedestrians.