Farming’s shocking record of deaths in the workplace need to be tackled, according to the Chief Executive of the Health and Safety Executive for Northern Ireland, Keith Morrison.

In its latest annual report published this week, the HSE confirmed that workplace deaths had increased generally to 23 during the past year, comparied with eight during the previous year.

He said while the attitudes towards farm safety have improved, he called for more to be done to address the culture of risk-taking that still exists within some of the farming community.

He said: “Farming still has a poor safety record, with more fatalities across all age groups compared to other industries.

“Not only did nine people die on our farms last year, since the year 2000 there have been 102 farming deaths in Northern Ireland.

“This is a shocking record and needs to be tackled by all of us. We must all work every day to stop this needless heartache.

“Sadly, two people have already lost their lives on farms in the first six months of this year and while HSENI and partners will continue our efforts to eradicate farm accidents, farmers must also play their part by taking responsibility for safety on their farms. By working together we can develop a positive, preventative culture where safety is built in to every job on the farm – big or small.” The latest figures also underline the importance of HSENI’s focus on farm safety, as despite a fall in the number of farm fatalities from 11 in 2012/13 to four in 2013/14, sadly 2014/15 saw the number rise again to nine.

Through its second Farm Safety Action Plan, the Farm Safety Partnership (FSP) continues to make a major contribution towards raising awareness of the main health and safety issues facing the farming industry. However, the challenge remains to help farmers make the transition from awareness to changing behaviours.

George Lucas, Chair of HSENI and the Farm Safety Partnership added: “While it is encouraging that more farmers are introducing effective measures to improve safety, we need to build upon the strong partnerships already in place to ensure that all farms operate within a culture of safety first.

“Any one of the four main causes – Slurry, Animals, Falls and Equipment – can cause a serious injury or farm death. Sadly in 2014/15 we are still seeing far too many accidents of all types on farms and this needs to stop if we are to avoid future fatalities” HSENI also has major concerns about poor health and safety practices found in some parts of the local construction, waste and recycling, and extractive industries.

For example, last year a targeted inspection campaign found evidence of poor standards and dangerous practices on a number of Northern Ireland’s construction sites.

HSENI inspectors also continue to see evidence which suggests that it is only a matter of time before another fatality occurs on a waste and recycling site.

Commenting on these findings and calling for more effort from industry, Mr. Lucas said: “It is simply unacceptable for people to die or be seriously hurt in workplaces and clearly some parts of some industries need to do more.

“As our economy recovers we all need to be vigilant to unsafe working practices and to work hard every day to ensure we reduce the number of injuries and deaths in the workplace.“While HSENI is keen to advise companies on how to meet their legal requirements, we will not hesitate to take enforcement action where there is a clear danger to the well-being and safety of Northern Ireland’s workforce.”