I farm 600 acres in North Herefordshire with my parents. My family has been farming 450 acres of that since the 1930s but I will never have to pay inheritance tax on it because we don’t own it. Like many farmers, we are tenants and could be left without a viable business should our farm be sold from under us.
In October, Labour announced their proposal to scrap agricultural Property Relief (APR), which allows farms to be inherited without incurring inheritance tax (IHT). Furious farmers are again heading for Westminster to protest against these inheritance tax changes, for what is expected to be the biggest protest yet over its policy agenda since Labour won the general election. The rally will hear from farming leaders, and celebrities including Jeremy Clarkson, who has accused the government of “ethnically cleansing” the British countryside. A procession will be led by children on toy tractors. Between 10,000 and 40,000 people are expected, as anger against the tax changes continues to grow.
