2 days Ago
MPs and farmers were among the tens of thousands of people that protested in Whitehall over the government’s proposed change to farming Inheritance Tax. The rally, which was attended by an estimated 13,000 people in Westminster, according to police, was held alongside a mass lobby. The National Farmers’ Union (NFU) held the mass lobby of MPs with 1,800 of its members, three times as many people as originally planned, to urge backbenchers to stand up to the Government’s plans to impose inheritance tax on farms worth more than £1 million.
The protest aims to highlight the impact of the recent Budget on their farms, specifically the changes to Agricultural Property Relief (APR) and Business Property Relief (BPR). The government plans to reform both from April 2026, meaning that farm businesses will be subject to inheritance tax of 20 per cent of all agricultural assets valued over £1 million. The government has previously said that 27 per cent of farms will be affected by the changes proposed, which could potentially affect 66 farms in the Lewes area alone.
Conservative MP Mims Davies for East Grinstead and Uckfield and Andrew Griffith MP for Arundel and South Downs were both in attendance to show support to farmers. Conservative MP Mims Davies for East Grinstead and Uckfield was in attendance to show support to farmers (Image: ROGER HARRIS) Farmers have reacted with anger and dismay to the inheritance tax changes for farming businesses, which limit the existing 100 per cent relief for farms to only the first £1 million of combined agricultural and business property. Mims Davies, MP for East Grinstead and Uckfield, who is also the shadow secretary of state for Wales, said: “I'm here today to support my local farmers and farmers coming down from Wales who are really concerned about this Government's actions that will affect the next generation of farmers.
“I was at my farming conference at the South of England Showground last week, where farmers were absolutely determined to battle against the environment, the weather, and this government as they're so worried about this tax on family farms. “Whether you're in the countryside, whether you're in my constituency, Wales, or across the country, our food security matters, and today farmers are stopping their work to stand up for our food and our future. “Make sure you back them.
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