There are children in our cities who do not know where our food comes from. It’s not their fault: the fields, cattle sheds and flour mills which produce our staples can feel a million miles away from hectic modern lives in urban centres where cost, speed and convenience are often paramount.
The people who produce the food so that we can pop into our local supermarket and buy what we need do so without the recognition they deserve. Thanks to our farmers, their staff and their families (often the same people), our food chains stay intact and we have a high degree of food security. And this certainty is now at risk from the decisions Labour has made in the Budget.
Food security is national security. Labour’s manifesto and candidates repeated this line. And yet, four months in government and they have reneged on their promises to support the very people that produce our food. But more than that, they have outlined crass plans that will both threaten food security and destroy small family farms up and down this country. They have demonstrated starkly that they neither value nor understand rural communities. Same old Labour.
Farmers tend to be asset rich but cash poor. Family farms are passed down through generations, thanks to Agricultural Property Tax Relief and Business Tax Relief. These are not “loopholes” as Rachel Reeves describes them, but careful tax planning policies that have evolved over decades to protect family businesses and farms from being split up upon death. The measures set out by Rachel Reeves and Keir Starmer will rip this up. The family farm tax means that land and assets that generations of farmers have nurtured will have to be sold in order to pay death duties - a move that will affect tens of thousands of farms.
I have already been contacted by the NFU, who have been in touch with many older farmers who are hugely distressed. It is simply devastating.
We already know that mental health amongst farmers is a huge concern. It can be a lonely and isolating line of work. There are some fantastic charities that exist, but this latest challenge will only add to the burden. My colleague, Aphra Brandreth MP, will be bringing forward a debate this week on how we can improve mental health amongst agricultural communities and I am sure this will be raised.
Labour have chosen to wage war on an industry that is already under pressure. Rather than give farmers the confidence that they need to invest in their farms, they are ripping up the protections they need to survive. With some farmers already at breaking point, the human cost could be very serious.
I am proud that Kemi Badenoch challenged Keir Starmer on his plans this week, and made clear that we Conservatives will reverse Labour’s family farm tax. This is the first policy commitment since Kemi became the Leader. We cannot allow Labour to break British farming.
Finally, a message to every farmer, every farming family, every farm worker and every rural community in Britain - we Conservatives stand with you and we will fight these plans. Our farmers feed us and they now need us to stand up for them and stop the family farm tax.
