Farm inheritance tax shake-up aimed at ‘exceptionally wealthy’ and will ‘affect a handful of people’

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Tuesday saw thousands of furious farmers descend connected Westminster to protestation changes to the inheritance taxation paid connected farms.

There's since been speech of strikes - and adjacent the anticipation of bare shelves - if the authorities garbage to U-turn connected changes to inheritance taxation announced successful the recent  Budget .

Chancellor  Rachel Reeves  announced taxation breaks for farmland worthy implicit £1million volition beryllium closed. But she said a drawstring of protections for spouses and children of farmers who dice mean the threshold volition beryllium 3 times this sum successful astir cases.

Speaking connected The Division Bell podcast, The Mirror ’s Mikey Smith said the changes volition lone interaction a tiny radical of people.

He said: “A tiny fistful of these radical are ever going to wage inheritance taxation connected their farms, careless of what people's accountants say.”

“And let's not forget, people's accountants are ne'er going to beryllium proven incorrect until their clients are nary longer with us….and the taxman is saying, no, it's not going to it's going to impact a fistful of people.”

“This [change] is aimed astatine radical who are exceptionally affluent and person historically avoided inheritance taxation by ploughing a citrus into farms and getting relief…They're not farmers. They're conscionable affluent people.”

Labour  has repeatedly claimed that lone the wealthiest 500 estates each twelvemonth volition beryllium affected.

They accidental the caller argumentation volition bring £520 cardinal into the system and volition plug the £22 cardinal 'black hole' the Tories near behind.

With the summation of different allowances, the authorities accidental that successful world radical volition beryllium capable to walk connected arsenic overmuch arsenic £3 cardinal without paying inheritance tax.

Mikey said: “You would person to walk connected 3 cardinal worthy of assets, including your farm, earlier you wage a penny [of inheritance tax], which seems similar rather a batch to me.”

“And I ideate it seems similar rather a batch to astir people. You've got to remember, a batch of radical successful this state don't person immoderate assets, don't person houses, don't person cars.”

“It's a truly pugnacious merchantability erstwhile these radical wage their taxes arsenic they should, don't person the accidental to debar taxation... And connected apical of that they're still, done their taxes, subsidising the farming sector, which they person been for decades.”

“ I would beryllium perfectly amazed if much than a fistful of farmers had to merchantability disconnected adjacent a field.”

Under the Chancellor’s plans the changes volition lone use to farms worthy much than £1million (£3million if owned by a couple) and adjacent past the taxation volition beryllium charged astatine a reduced complaint of 20%.

Treasury figures amusement that 1,730 farms were passed connected successful 2021-22 of which 1,264 were worthy little than £1million. These figures suggest that lone a tiny information of farms volition really beryllium impacted.

However, the National Farmers Union and the Country Land and Business Association says that up to 70,000 farms could inactive beryllium impacted by the changes.

President Tom Bradshaw told Sky News connected Tuesday: "There's ever been an understanding, a contract, betwixt farming and society, farming and the government, ever since the Second World War, and this  Labour  Government has conscionable destroyed that declaration with the changes they projected to the inheritance tax."