Jeremy Clarkson to join thousands of farmers protesting at inheritance tax shake-up

The erstwhile Top Gear presenter Jeremy Clarkson, who owns a workplace successful the Cotswolds, is said to beryllium defying doctors' orders to articulation farmers protesting successful cardinal London

Jeremy Clarkson is set to articulation thousands of farmers arsenic they descend connected Westminster successful protestation astatine changes to inheritance tax.

The erstwhile Top Gear presenter is said to beryllium defying doctors' orders aft a caller bosom cognition to articulation the objection successful cardinal London.

The National Farmers' Union (NFU) is holding a wide lobby of MPs with 1,800 of its members to impulse backbenchers to request the Government U-turns. Thousands much are expected to articulation a abstracted rally successful Whitehall arsenic they protest.

Mr Clarkson told The Sun: “I volition beryllium there, contempt having letters from doctors telling maine not to spell connected the march and saying I indispensable debar stress.” The Cotswolds workplace proprietor added: “We person got 2 coaches of farmers from astir present who are leaving from Diddly Squat. It is simply a hugely important issue.”

Over a decennary agone Mr Clarkson said determination were "many sensible reasons" for wherefore helium bought a farm, including that the "government doesn’t get immoderate of my wealth erstwhile I die". But past period the Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced a shake-up to inheritance taxation rules - prompting a large row.

Previously farming businesses qualified for 100% alleviation - paying zero inheritance tax. But present the taxation is being imposed connected farms worthy much than £1 million, with an effectual taxation complaint of 20% connected assets supra the threshold. This is little than the mean 40% complaint for inheritance tax.

The Government claims that the existent threshold earlier paying inheritance taxation could beryllium arsenic overmuch arsenic £3 million, erstwhile exemptions for each spouse successful a mates and for the workplace spot are taken into account.

In a associated connection with the Environment Secretary Steve Reed past night, the Chancellor said farmers were the backbone of Britain and acknowledged the "strength of feeling" from farming and agrarian communities successful caller weeks.

They insisted they were "steadfast" successful their enactment of British farming, saying: "It's wherefore we are investing £5 cardinal into farming implicit the adjacent 2 years - the largest magnitude ever directed towards sustainable nutrient production, agrarian economical maturation and nature's betterment successful our country's history.

But they said: "With nationalist services crumbling and a £22 cardinal fiscal spread that this Government inherited, we person taken hard decisions. The reforms to cultivation spot alleviation guarantee that wealthier estates and the astir invaluable farms wage their just stock to put successful our schools and wellness services that farmers and families successful agrarian communities trust on."

But the President of the National Farmers' Union (NUF) Tom Bradshaw has accused the authorities of a "betrayal" of farmers.

He 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 person conscionable destroyed that declaration with the changes they projected to the inheritance tax."

He said NFU members are "asset-rich but cash-poor".. "We'd emotion to wage much tax," Mr Bradshaw added. "If we get due margins from nutrient production, and we extremity up swelling the Treasury coffers, bring it on.

"But astatine the infinitesimal the proviso concatenation doesn't springiness america those returns that enables america to prevention the wealth to wage the inheritance taxation that this Government present wants to take."