Farmers Protest Inheritance Tax Changes, Warning of Industry Threat

Farmers from across the South East issued a warning about a “ticking time bomb” during a significant protest held outside Parliament, which focused on proposed alterations to inheritance tax regulations. The National Farmers’ Union (NFU) brought together 1,800 of its members in London for a large-scale lobbying event targeting Members of Parliament, concurrently with an anticipated attendance of over 10,000 individuals at a rally scheduled for Whitehall. Effective April 2026, agricultural assets inherited with a value exceeding £1 million, which were previously exempt, will become subject to a 20% tax rate, representing half the standard rate. The government has stated that the majority of farms will remain unaffected by these changes. Paula Matthews, a tenant farmer operating near Dorking, conveyed to Radio Surrey: “We haven’t got land that – in the generation – we could sell that land to pay an enormous inheritance tax.” She added: “We think that the Treasury have got their figures wrong. Defra’s [Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs] figures don’t match the Treasury’s.” Matthews further stated: “We think it’s going to hit a lot more family farms across the country.” She concluded by saying: “We need to see a reversal of this inheritance tax.” Nellie Budd, whose husband is a fourth-generation farmer based in Brockham, described the potential impact on her family as “quite scary.” She informed Radio Surrey: “It would not make the farming business a viable business for us,” adding, “We’d probably have to give up running the farm and go and look for a different job.” Budd also remarked: “I think they forget that we are the beating heart of the community, to the countryside.” Jessica Copper, a sheep farmer from High Halden in Kent, stated that the proposed changes would be catastrophic for her family. She explained: “If my parents pass away I’d have to sell the farm to pay the inheritance tax and that would take away from my children the lifestyle I enjoyed growing up,” adding, “We’re not earning loads of money and having flashy cars. It literally goes back into the animals, back into the feed.” Annie Brown, a third-generation farmer from Perching Manor Farm in Faulking, informed Radio Sussex: “It’s actually putting a ticking time bomb under farmers.” Tim Porter, a farmer situated near Canterbury, conveyed to Radio Kent that there was a “lack of understanding” regarding the true value of farms. He commented: “To maintain a business for younger generations is going to be very difficult having to pay this tax,” Frank Langrish, whose family has been farming in the Rye area since 1912, stated to Radio Sussex: “There’s no way in the world that we could continue to farm the same area of land.” He elaborated: “My son, who is in the business with me, would end up with an inheritance tax bill of probably over a million pounds.” Langrish concluded: “With farmers, we’re asset rich and cash poor.” Rural affairs minister Daniel Zeichner advised farmers to “look calmly” at the government’s proposals, asserting that “the vast majority will be fine.”