No Farmers, No Food! Why have the Labour Government’s changes caused such an  emotional uproar for farming communities?

Amelia Cropley

Benjamin Franklin was unfortunately correct when he said there is nothing in life more certain than death and taxes. And if you didn’t believe it before, you will now after the Labour Party’s Autumn Budget concerning farmers nationwide. Following Chancellor of Exchequer, Rachel Reeves’ decision to implement taxation in inheriting farmland, when agriculture was previously exempt, has caused emotional uproar from farmers up and down the country.

These changes may be leaving farmers without a farm at all

On 19th November, tens of thousands decided to protest at Westminster, accompanied by tractors, Reform leader Nigel Farage, Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey and Amazon Prime’s favourite farmer, Jeremy Clarkson. Tom Bradshaw (National Farming Union President) claimed he had ‘never seen the industry this angry, this disillusioned, and this upset’. And rightfully so, these changes may be leaving farmers without a farm at all, and losing what they and their family’s generations have worked so hard towards.

The infamous changes made by the Labour government has announced a cap on Agricultural Property Relief (APR) and Business Property Relief (BPR), which previously gave inheritance tax exemptions for agricultural property and business assets. The new rule imposes a threshold of up to £1 million, which includes the assets to both agriculture and business property, meaning if a farmer or farming business has assets exceeding £1 million, they shall be taxed 20% of their value, payable over 10 years interest free.

Just because a farm is asset-rich, certainly doesn’t mean they are cash-rich, a point the government has turned a blind eye to.

The intention of these actions was to target the wealthy landowners only, who have been known to use the system to avoid tax, however the uproar it has caused is the government’s ignorance (or apathy), that this will affect many more farms than they claim. Just because a farm is asset-rich, certainly doesn’t mean they are cash-rich, a point the government has turned a blind eye to. Gavin Lane from Country Land and Business Association, has even stated that ‘either the government isn’t being honest with the public about the true impact of these reforms, or they don’t understand the nature of rural business.’

Country Land and Business Association (CLA) argue that more farms will be impacted by the changes made, leaving farmers yet again at the bottom of the food chain. This is due to the governments incorporation of both Agricultural Property Relief and Business Property Relief, combining the assets of land, machinery, buildings and more.

They further explain that most farms, even small family-run farms, do in fact exceed the £1 million threshold for the value of land, property, equipment and livestock, despite Steve Reed claiming  ‘3/4 of farmers will pay nothing as a result of the changes’. But CLA modelled that a small 200-acre arable farm can be expected to make £27,300 profit, which would mean being taxed £370,000, where over ten years, 136% of their profits must cover their inheritance tax bill. So no wonder farmers brought it upon themselves to protest and represent the rural community that all our lives are reliant upon.

Farmers are the bread and butter to our livelihood, and quite literally, they produce both.

Farmers receive mere crumbs of the money from food they produce, often left with less than 1p of profits when supplying to supermarkets. UK Sustain found in 2022, that for a £1.14 loaf of bread (remember those times?), between the baker, retailer and miller, the farmer earns the last 0.09p. This is almost incomprehensible when farmers are the bread and butter to our livelihood, and quite literally, they produce both. With this economic inequity in mind, the new tax on top of the pittance a farmer is paid, means landowners cannot earn a living from solely selling their products, let alone having the money to pay 20% of its value. This means land owners will be forced to sell their land, consequently giving away the resources they need to achieve their income in the first place.

For example, the CLA shows that only a 350-acre model arable farm will be forced to sell 12% of their land. But this is a farmer’s work, their home and their families legacy. To which will soon be taken away from them.

The only way a farmer can avoid this taxation is by passing the farm to the next owner, most likely the next-generation in family-run farms. But this creates its own set of complications. No one can plan this! What if a farm isn’t passed on due to an unexpected death? Or a current older farm owner who will now be quick to pass on their farm, may not have seven years to do so. But the detriment is evident now when 78-year-old John Charlesworth, a farmer from Yorkshire decided to end his life so his family could inherit his 70 acres before these changes would come into place. John Charlesworth illustrates how important a farm is to a family, and how upsetting it would be to sell their family farm to pay for inheritance tax.

It is reasons like this that make it obvious why such an emotional response was spiked from the Autumn Budget. Farmers are the salt of the earth, therefore we have to protect farmland and support our farmers in this protest.

Whilst Webber made his discriminatory opinion public, the protesting farmers do not share this perspective

Andrew Lloyd Webber was quick in presenting xenophobic viewpoints that with the implementation of these changes, claiming farms will soon be run by ‘foreigners, probably outsiders’ who he claims won’t buy it for the love of the countryside but as a mere investment. And whilst Webber made his discriminatory opinion public, the protesting farmers do not share this perspective, in fact are far from it and are only concerned with the unfairness of the government’s new rule for current landowners.

The November protests demonstrated that farmers have persisted through the cost of living crisis and were Covid-19’s ‘key workers’, and the climate changes that affect their land, however refrained from taking a stand in striking despite earning so little. This is because the rural community knows that when there are no farmers, there is no food. But when will be their time to take a stand? When will we begin to support their profession, to which everyone’s survival depends? When will we be protesting, to tell those in charge not to bite the hand that feeds them?

This is not just land, this is a farmers livelihood, their family’s devotion, which will all be stripped away… because of tax.

It is evident and justified why such an emotional reaction has been provoked, especially within the farming community, who have come together in peaceful outcry. These changes are affecting all generations, from the small children in toy tractors in Westminster, whose farming future will be changed, to current owners who are stuck between a rock and a hard place to do what’s best for everything they have worked for. This is not just land, this is a farmers livelihood, their family’s devotion, which will all be stripped away… because of tax. So yes, we must understand why many farmers are so upset nationwide.

Amelia Cropley