Safety efforts failing as number of farm deaths doubles, claims MEP

THE number of deaths on farms as a result of work accidents has doubled in the past year as efforts to improve safety fail, according to MEP Jim Higgins.

The agriculture industry is one of the most lethal work environments in the country with more than half the deaths involving heavy machinery, the Fine Gael member of the European Parliament said.

So far this year, 23 people have been killed on farms as a result of work-related accidents, more than double the 11 deaths last year.