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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Politics
John Crace

No hiding place for Labour’s farming minister as Whitehall teems with tweed and gumboots

A semi-circle of farmers with protest placards on a grass bank give some space to Victoria Atkins brandishing a megaphone and union jack jacket
Victoria Atkins, the shadow environment secretary, joined her new leader, Kemi Badenoch, at the march. Photograph: Andrew Matthews/PA

It was a very civilised protest. The sort of protest you might expect from roughly 10,000 asset-rich, cash-poor millionaire farmers from all over the country. The police officers there just to redirect the traffic. Only the occasional shouted slogans to punctuate proceedings; most people were just happy to be there. “What do we want?” “To not pay inheritance tax on our farms.” It had a ring.

Whitehall has probably never seen so much tweed. Nigel Farage was out there looking like Mr Toad. Flat cap, pristine Barbour jacket, mustard trousers and green wellies. He never can resist a chance to cosplay. Someone might have told him that the streets had been tarmacked a while back. There again, Nige is always willing to piggyback on other people’s grievances. Perhaps he might first like to explain why Brexit has hit farmers so hard.

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