A new grassroots initiative organised by a coalition of working British family farmers has been launched to contest the proposed inheritance tax changes.
Fairer Family Farming aims to spread awareness of the situation that many farmers will find themselves in as a result of the new inheritance proposals that were announced in last year’s budget.
The campaign highlighted that farms, which are often valued above £1 million due to land prices, will be treated as “high-value estates, despite most farmers earning the equivalent of an average household income.”
Fairer Family Farming warns that the incoming inheritance tax reform will leave many farming families with no choice other than to break up and sell their farms to meet these tax bills, which the organisation said will jeopardise jobs, rural economies and Britain’s food security.
Inheritance tax
The group is urging the government to reconsider its current proposal and “adopt a fairer approach that protects Britain’s farming heritage while ensuring tax integrity.”
Fairer Family Farming has outlined its support for the inheritance tax proposal from the Centre for Analysis of Taxation (CenTax), which is called the ‘minimum share rule’,
The campaign stated that this approach from CenTax “would preserve agricultural property relief and business property relief for genuine farmers while closing loopholes for passive investors.”
Fairer Family Farming
The grassroots movement has been initiated by long-time family farmers David Passmore, who is the campaign founder, Robin Hart OBE, and Phil Merson.
David Passmore commented: “Farming isn’t just a job; it’s a way of life that sustains communities and powers local economies.”
“Current proposals risk dismantling businesses that have sustained communities for generations.
“That’s why we’re asking ministers to carefully consider the Centax proposal again and engage with Labour’s new rural MPs in order to ensure a fairer approach,” he added.
