Farmers have protested against the Government’s changes to Inheritance Tax (IHT) at Westminster, with the National Farmers’ Union (NFU) labelling the proposed changes as: “Nothing short of a stab in the back”.
Thousands of farmers marched on Westminster and NFU president Tom Bradshaw said: “I don’t think I’ve ever seen the industry this angry, this disillusioned and this upset. And given what we’ve had to be angry about in recent years that’s saying something.
“There has never been a budget this bad for farming in my lifetime. This shocking policy is built on bad data and was launched with no consultation. The Treasury didn’t even tell Defra!
“To launch a policy this destructive without speaking to anyone involved in farming beggars’ belief. And let us remember that they promised not to do this when they were wooing the rural vote. It’s not only been bungled in delivery, it’s also nothing short of a stab in the back. But we also know that APR & BPR is the straw which broke the camel’s back for farming.”
Bradshaw continued: “After years of changing policy and 18 months of some of the worst weather on record, the budget has been a kick in the teeth. It is full of let-downs for our vital sector: accelerated BPS reductions, double cab pick-up taxes, new taxes on fertilisers. The list goes on. Rest assured the NFU, and the other unions, are fighting all of these policies.”
He said the Treasury was not going to achieve what it had set out to do: “Far from catching wealthy homeowners with a bit of land, the Treasury’s mangling of the data means those people will generally not be affected.
“It’s the farms producing this country’s food, which are more valuable assets, that are caught in the eye of the storm. The irony that this asset wealth will never become actual wealth unless farms are broken up or sold – kicking the legs out from under Britain’s food security – is a bitter one.”
Government says vast majority of farmers will not pay more
The Government has maintained that it supports farmers, with Defra Secretary Steve Reed telling SkyNews: “This Government’s commitment to farming, and to farmers, is absolute. That’s why we’ve allocated £5 billion to farming in the Budget; that’s the biggest amount of money in our country’s history for sustainable food production, but we have to plug that £22 billion black hole in our public finances otherwise we can’t fix our public services like the broken National Health Service.
“So, it’s only right that we’ve had to ask the wealthiest land owners and the biggest farms to pay their fair share, but I would emphasise only around 500 farmers will be affected, because the vast majority of farmers will pay no more under the new scheme than they do under the current one.”
NFU Scotland also attended the protest, with president Martin Kennedy stating: “For a Government to have stepped away from its claim that ‘food security is national security’ and targeted taxation changes at family farms in its first budget has left farming and crofting families deeply angry and frustrated.
“Inheritance tax reliefs give certainty to family farms that they will be able to keep the farm in the family and keep producing food for the nation. Without this, the family will often have little alternative but to sell the farm, or part of the farm, to pay taxes. The resulting breakup of many family farms will have a devastating effect on rural communities which have small family farms at their heart.
“The impact on many Scottish family farms, already stretched to breaking point after a decade of tightening margins, input cost inflation and extreme weather events, could be the final straw for many.”
