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MP Mark Garnier joined Wyre Forest farmers in London as part of a major rally against the government's 'Family Farm Tax' plans. Mr Garnier says Labour’s political choice to target farmers is a brutal blow to the industry and will affect workers and consumers across the country. Mr Garnier said: “The new Labour government’s farmers tax unjustly targets family-owned farms and businesses - affecting 66% of them across the country.
“Not only has the Prime Minister underestimated and undervalued the farms affected by this harsh new tax, but the knock-on effects for the whole country could be disastrous. “In the house last week I raised the important issue of farmers who have mortgages being at risk of being left in negative equity, as a result of the new Labour government’s poorly thought-out plans to push down the price of agricultural land. “Despite promising not to do so – this new Labour government policy has the potential to wreck the livelihoods of farmers across the country and the industry as a whole.
“I will remain committed to helping local farmers in my constituency to fight this harsh new tax and I would also urge people to sign our petition at stopthefarmtax.com.” The rally, which was attended by an estimated 13,000 people, according to police, was held alongside a mass lobby of MPs by members of the National Farmers’ Union (NFU).
Mark Garnier holding up a Keir Starmer: Farmer Harmer sign (Image: Mark Garnier) TV presenter and journalist-turned-farmer Jeremy Clarkson accused the government of dealing a “hammer blow” to farmers during the protest. Farmers have reacted with anger and dismay to the inheritance tax changes for farming businesses, which limit the existing 100% relief for farms to only the first £1 million of combined agricultural and business property. But ministers have said farmers are “wrong” to think that thousands of farm businesses will be affected by the changes, insisting only around 500 of the wealthiest estates will have to pay tax under the move.
The government has also said they had put a record £5 billion aside over two years for sustainable farming, but farmers warn of of the impact of speeding up the phase-out of EU-era subsidies as funding is switched to nature-friendly land management schemes, and other measures in the Budget. Environment Secretary Steve Reed said that only a few hundred farms would be impacted, rather than the tens of thousands claimed by critics of the inheritance tax change. “If farmers look at the facts they will see the vast majority of them will pay nothing more under the new scheme than they did under the old scheme,” he said.
In an appearance before MPs in the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee on Tuesday, Mr Reed said, based on projections from the Treasury, many farmers who thought they were going to be affected “probably happily, are wrong”. “The numbers I’ve heard bandied around are enormous and very, very frightening if people were to believe them,” he said. A petition at stopthefarmtax.
com has been set up for people to back British farming and oppose the new tax plans..
