Concern about the increasing number of farm accidents was expressed by the Minister of State for Enterprise, Trade and Employment.

Mr Tom Kitt said 13 fatalities in the agricultural sector were reported to the health and safety authority for the first six months of this year. This compared with six for the same period last year.

Twenty-four non-fatal accidents were reported to the authority for the first half of last year, compared to 17 in the same period last year. However, according to the authority, there was a significant and considerable under-reporting of non-fatal accidents in the agricultural sector and this fact should be borne in mind when examining the figures, Mr Kitt added.