"United in a way I've never seen before" - Farmers hail national event which highlighted 'family farm tax' campaign

Towns across the UK, including the Midlands, saw farmers gather to thank the public for their overwhelming support on January 25. 

The day saw farmers underline to  MPs that efforts will not stop until plans for the tax are subject to consultation and proper scrutiny.  

Analysis undertaken for the NFU has suggested 75 per cent of commercial family farms will be impacted by the inheritance tax changes.

AHDB, meanwhile,  calculated 33,286 farms out of 41,602 (80 per cent)  in England  that are 50 hectares (124 acres) or more in size will be affected.

As well as an emphasis on the farm tax, the day of unity also saw a whole raft of community activities, supporting food banks and educating people on the the important work farmers do, while handing out local produce to shoppers. 

The events came a day after a petition signed by more than 270,000 members of the public was handed in to 10 Downing Street by NFU President Tom Bradshaw and NFU Cymru President Aled Jones on behalf of the four UK farming unions, urging the government to ditch its tax.

Ludlow was among the town to take part in the day of unity and Becky Morgan, the NFU's Ludlow branch chair, said: "The event held in Ludlow was a demonstration of how deeply these tax changes will impact real farming families across South Shropshire and from the many conversations had with the public on the day, it is clear we have their full support.

“The government's claim that most family farms will be unaffected is completely at odds with the reality we're facing. These changes have already shattered confidence in farm investment, and many of us are now questioning whether we'll have viable businesses to pass on to our children.

 “This issue has united the farming community in a way that I've never seen before and we will not rest until the government recognises the devastating impact this policy will have on food security, the environment, and our rural communities."

Brian Goodwin, who farms at Abbots Bromley, attended a Day of Unity event in Uttoxeter and said a lot of people came to talk to them to find out more and said they were genuinely interested in what was going on. 

He added:  “Farmers are our rural army and despite the main challenges thrown at us over the years, including spiralling costs and extreme weather, we keep soldiering on but now enough is enough and as an industry we have taken a stand on this and are not going away. 

“If family families are forced to sell and the land is taken out of their hands our future food security and national security will be forever lost. In such an uncertain world, few things are certain.  We live, we die - we need food and water. 

“We must keep our food production safe in the hands of our British farmers and growers – we lose it at our peril.”

Speaking on her way to an event in Chester, Cheshire, Rachel Hallos, a livestock farmer and the vice president of the NFU, added:  “The inheritance tax changes from the Budget will ultimately decimate what we’ve currently got in this country, and we’re really worried about it.

“We completely appreciate that a lot of members of the general public will say, ‘Oh for goodness sake, you’re alright in your big farmhouses, all this lamb that you own…’ But the reality is, those are our assets, we never sell them.

“So it’s complicated, and we’re just trying to shed a light on it for some members of the public who don’t quite understand why we’re making so much noise about this.”

She added: “We genuinely don’t believe that the Government understands the complexity of what it is that happens in the countryside and how entwined all those rural businesses are.They all rely on each other.

“It’s a little bit like a deck of cards – if you pull one of those cards out, the whole thing comes tumbling down.

“And the fact that the entire industry has come together with such strength and such clarity, and for the Government to disregard that and not want to sit at the table and talk about this is quite remarkable.

“Food and environment just doesn’t seem to be important to this Government.”

A Government spokesperson said: “Our commitment to farmers remains steadfast. This Government will invest £5 billion into farming over the next two years, the largest budget for sustainable food production in our country’s history.

“We are going further with reforms to boost profits for farmers by backing British produce and reforming planning rules on farms to support food production.

“Our reform to Agricultural and Business Property Relief will mean estates will pay a reduced effective inheritance tax rate of 20%, rather than standard 40%, and payments can be spread over 10 years, interest-free.

“This is a fair and balanced approach, which fixes the public services we all rely on, affecting around 500 estates a year.”