Labour Humiliated Into Farm Tax Climbdown After Months of Tractor Protests

BREAKING: Labour humiliated into farm tax climbdown after months of tractor protests

CP

The Labour Government has been forced into a major U turn on its controversial ‘Family Farm Tax’ after months of furious protests by farmers and mounting unrest on Labour’s own backbenches.

Ministers confirmed today that plans to impose inheritance tax on farms have been watered down, with the threshold for taxation rising sharply from £1million to £2.5million.

The climbdown follows 14 months of near constant demonstrations outside Parliament, warnings about food security and growing disquiet among rural MPs.

At last year’s Budget, the Government announced it would begin charging a 20 per cent inheritance tax on agricultural assets worth more than £1m from April 2026, sparking outrage across Britain’s farming communities.

Environment Secretary Emma Reynolds said ministers had been forced to listen.

“We have listened closely to farmers across the country and we are making changes today to protect more ordinary family farms,” she said.

“It’s only right that larger estates contribute more, while we back the farms and trading businesses that are the backbone of Britain’s rural communities.”

Farming leaders cautiously welcomed the shift, while warning it does not go far enough.

National Farmers’ Union head Tom Bradshaw told BBC Radio 5 Live the change “takes out many family farms from the eye of pernicious storm”.

But the Country Land and Business Association said the damage had not been undone.

Its president Gavin Lane said:

“The government deserves credit for recognising the flaws in the original policy and changing course.

“However, this announcement only limits the damage, it doesn’t eradicate it entirely.

“Many family businesses will own enough expensive machinery and land to be valued above the threshold, yet still operate on such narrow profit margins that this tax burden remains unaffordable.”

The original proposals triggered a political storm, with tractors lining Westminster streets and banners accusing ministers of threatening Britain’s food supply.

Some of Labour’s own MPs also rebelled. At a recent parliamentary vote, a dozen backbenchers abstained, while one MP voted against the Government.

That MP, Markus Campbell-Savours, was suspended for defying the party whip and now sits as an independent. Opposition parties immediately claimed victory.

Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said on social media:

“This fight isn’t finished.

“Other family businesses are still affected by Labour’s tax raid, and we will keep pushing until the tax is lifted from them too.”

She later added in a lengthy statement:

“This is a huge u turn by the government and a big win for the Conservative Party’s campaign against Labour’s Family Farm Tax.

“Earlier this year, I was told to drop our campaign, that there weren’t many votes in it, there weren’t many farmers, and people assumed they were wealthy enough to cope anyway. I ignored the advice and kept campaigning.

“The Family Farm Tax is cruel, immoral and will not raise any money because farmers will stop farming. It would have pushed farms to the brink, damaged our food supply, and hurt the people who work long hours to feed the country.

“Family farms aren’t big corporations. They are often small businesses passed down through generations, run by parents and children together, rooted in their local communities. If they fail, they are gone for good.

“@Conservatives have always understood this. Similar ideas were put forward in the past and we said ‘NO!’ because you don’t punish people who do the right thing, work the land, and keep the country going.

“Labour, by contrast, came into office with no real plan and chose to target people they assumed wouldn’t vote for them anyway. Farmers have paid the price.

“We refused to accept this. We kept campaigning, week after week. Thousands of people signed our petition and contacted their MPs in Labour seats. Their voices mattered and today’s u turn shows they were heard.

“Farmers are exactly the kind of people Conservatives stand up for, hard working, responsible, family focused, and committed to passing something on to the next generation. That feels especially important at Christmas, a time when family, care for others, and responsibility are at the heart of what we celebrate.

“This fight isn’t finished. Other family businesses are still affected by Labour’s tax raid, and we will keep pushing until the tax is lifted from them too. But today is an important win, and proof that standing up for what’s fair, even when the odds are against us can make a real difference.”

The Liberal Democrats also piled on the pressure.

Their farming spokesman Tim Farron said:

“It is utterly inexcusable that family farmers have been put through over a year of uncertainty and anguish since the government first announced these changes.

“We demand that the government scraps this unfair tax in full and if they refuse to, Liberal Democrats will submit amendments in the new year to bring it down.”

Despite the revised threshold, campaigners warn that many family run farms, asset rich but cash poor, remain at risk.

And with opposition leaders vowing to keep fighting, the bitter battle over Britain’s farms is far from over.

---

This article (BREAKING: Labour humiliated into farm tax climbdown after months of tractor protests) was created and published by Conservative Post and is republished here under “Fair Use” with attribution to the author CP