Opposition MPs told the Labour leader during Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday he should “change course” over the Chancellor’s changes to inheritance tax that will have a catastrophic impact on farms across the country.
Sir Keir Starmer was accused of being “duplicitous” as farmers protest in Westminster against Labour’s Budget measures.
Farmers will be forced to pay 20% inheritance tax on their land and properties after the first £1 million.
Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey told Starmer during PMQs, “British farmers are the best in the world.
“They are the best in the world because of our tradition of family farms, where from generation to generation a commitment to high-quality food, to our precious environment and animal welfare is passed down.
“But family farms were let down badly by the last Conservative government, with the botched transition to new payment schemes, and their unfair trade deals with Australia and New Zealand that have undercut British farmers.
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Farmers protest in Westminster branding the PM as ‘Starmer the farmer harmer’
“Now many family farms feel the Government’s budget will be the final blow. So will the Prime Minister change course and recognise the vital role that British family farms play?”
Tory Norfolk MP Jerome Mayhew later told MPs in the House of Commons, “’Losing a farm is not like losing any other business. It can’t come back’.
“Now, those are the words of the Prime Minister, that is what he said to the NFU (National Farmers’ Union) in order to get their votes, so can the Prime Minister understand why farmers in Broadland and Fakenham and around the country now think that his administration is duplicitous?”
Starmer replied with the government has spent “last week alone, £350 million to support farmers across the United Kingdom.”
He said it “does contrast with the last government” as the Conservative underspent by £350 million for farmers, Starmer claimed.
The Labour leader told MPs, “I think everybody welcomes the £5 billion over the next two years that we’ve put in the budget – well, they shake their heads, I’m afraid they do.”
He added, “On the threshold, as he well knows, in an ordinary family case, the threshold is £3 million and that means the vast majority of farmers will be unaffected.”
Farmers arrived in Westminster on Wednesday morning to protest against Labour’s farming tax raid which has seen the Prime Minister being branded as “Starmer the farmer harmer.”
The protest has been organised by Save British Farming (SBF) and Kent Fairness for Farmers who are warning the tax raid is the “straw that broke the camel’s back.”
SBF founder Liz Webster said the Prime Minister “is pulling the rug from under farmers’ feet, aiming to dismantle British farming as we know it.
“But farmers are resilient and united in this fight.”
National Farmers’ Union president Tom Bradshaw said, “These events reflect the strong feelings across the agricultural community. We hope they are well-attended and farmers’ voices are heard.”
Nigel Farage spoke on Wednesday about the protests, he told The People’s Channel, “I’m really pleased – not only that tractors are here – they’re in Scotland, they’re in Wales, they’re in Yorkshire.”
