North Antrim MP, Jim Allister, believes that extending the scope of inheritance tax will stymie on-farm investment in Northern Ireland.
This is a direct result of the revenue-raising measure being expanded to include agricultural assets throughout the UK
Allister said: “Generally speaking, agriculture is in a pretty good place at the present time. Farm gate prices remain strong across the board.
“The weather has also played its part in making 2025 a successful year across agriculture as a whole.
“However, all of this is tempered by the fact that the new inheritance tax arrangements are forcing farm families to retain monies now to pay an unfair tax at some future stage, rather than investing in their businesses at the present time.”
The Traditional Unionist Voice (TUV) leader believes he can make a real difference for agriculture in Northern Ireland on two fronts.
One of these is the opportunity to highlight the inequalities of the new inheritance tax measures at Westminster whenever possible, according to Allister.
The other is to push for the “full re-alignment of the entire UK as a single and uniform trading entity”, which he said means dealing with issues pertaining to the Windsor Framework.
UK-EU deal
Allister noted the recent agreement reached between the UK and the EU on the issue of a biodynamic alignment of plant and veterinary health standards.
He said: “Agreeing on a matter of principle is one thing; assessing the technical details that follow is another issue altogether.
“But even if we reach a point when veterinary inspections of produce shipped from Great Britain to Northern Ireland are no longer required, the businesses involved will still have to complete customs declarations.
“This is additional bureaucracy that adds to the cost of the business being transacted for no good reason.”
However, Allister said that such bureaucracy is “in the future”.
He said: “Right now, we have the scenario of the Westminster government having removed the Movement Assistance Scheme, which underpinned the costs of veterinary inspection and certification required when plant and animal products are shipped from GB to Northern Ireland.
“As a result, we are now seeing a scenario unfold within which companies in GB are telling their customers in Northern Ireland that they must pay these charges.”
Allister also spoke about lack of understanding on the impact of the inheritance tax changes in Northern Ireland.
“A new government at Westminster may opt to reverse the inheritance tax changes. But this could be a number of years off,” he said.
“Meanwhile, the current administration may well have failed to grasp the significance of the inheritance tax changes and the specific impact they will have on farming here in Northern Ireland.
“But this is not about winning the moral argument: the current Labour government has the votes it needs to get its legislative programmes through. And this will always remain the bottom line.”
