John Rees on the rebirth of the right-wing opposition to Labour masquerading as care for the countryside

Keir Starmer and his Chancellor Rachel Reeves faced protests from farmers over the Budget’s extension of inheritance tax to cover farmers. 

Farm protests in London, supported by former Tory minister Priti Patel and Tory leader Kemi Badenoch, claimed the tax will spell the end of family farming. But the tax won’t make much difference to the shape of farming in the UK. Of the 210,000 farms in the UK, the government says only 500 will be affected by the tax.

These will not be small family farms but those owned by huge landowners, like the Crown and the landed aristocracy who own over 30 percent of farmland in the UK. One of those is the Duke of Athol who owns 145,000 acres. The average farm is just 200 acres, most farms are half that. 

The proposed inheritance tax is actually very fair to farmers. It charges them 20 percent on amounts over £500,000 whereas everyone else pays 40 percent. In addition, farmers will have a decade to pay the tax with no interest to pay on the amount they owe the public purse. That means that if you inherit an average terraced house in London, currently worth £700,000, you will pay more tax than farmers.

Currently farmers pay no tax, and this has meant that the very wealthy buy farmland to avoid paying tax. This is exactly what Jeremy Clarkson, the former TV presenter now advocating for farmers, did. He purchased a 1,000-acre Cotswold farm for £4.45 million. Clarkson’s respect for traditional farming did not stop him renaming Curdle Hill Farm as Diddly Squat Farm. At the time Clarkson wrote in the Times ‘Land is a better investment than any bank can offer. The government doesn’t get any of my money when I die’.

Another kickback against the Budget from the rich, this time the supermarkets, who joined other retailers in writing a letter declaring that the increases in the minimum wage and national insurance will lead them to increase prices, sack workers, and worsen conditions.

Yet Sainsbury’s and Tesco, both signatories to the complaint, made £1 billion and £4 billion profits respectively this year. The CEO of Sainsbury’s pocketed £4.5 million alone this year.

The irony is that the supermarkets are probably the biggest threat to UK farmers, using their position as monopoly buyers to drive down the prices paid to farmers. Supermarkets are also disproportionate importers to foreign foodstuff, undermining demand for domestically grown food.   

Keir Starmer’s problem is that his budget disappointed working people and further decreased their enthusiasm for him while at the same time his very moderate demands on the super-rich have been enough for them to mobilise against him. He has disappointed his natural supporters and angered his enemies.

It’s an uncomfortable place to be only a few months into government.