Suffolk County Council leaders rally behind opposition to Labour Government's farm tax

Leaders at the county council have rallied behind their opposition to the Government's farm tax proposals.

A motion led by county leader, Matthew Hicks, during yesterday's full council meeting urged councillors to set out their opposition to the Government's changes to Agricultural Property Relief (APR), dubbed as a family farm tax.

Under the plans, inherited agricultural properties worth more than £1 million will no longer be exempt from inheritance tax and will be subject to a 20 per cent tax bill from April 2026.

Cllr Hicks said: “Suffolk is a wonderful rural county and Suffolk County Council is proud of the farming heritage that goes back many generations.

"There is no doubt that the changes to the APR announced by the labour government create a family farm tax which fundamentally undermines the viability of Suffolk’s farming sector and threatens our nation’s food security."

The motion called for councillors to express concern about the Government's policy of decarbonising the electricity grid by 2030, instead of 2035, as it threatened the county's best and most versatile farmland, rural communities and landscape with tens of thousands of acres of solar farms.

Cllr Hicks said the council believed the 2030 target was a driver toward the 'unnecessary industrialisation' of Suffolk's landscape which did not allow for the proper exploration of alternative schemes.

Cllr Andrew Stringer, leader of the opposing GLI group, said landowners had been made to feel like part of the problem.

He added: "Today’s farmers have increasing issues, threats and challenges from all directions and you saw that in the protests.

"Landowners at whatever acreage have found this to be the final straw."

He highlighted some of the issues which included the unregulated buying power of supermarkets, volatile fuel prices, and the impacts of climate change on agricultural yields.

Cllr Stringer went on to add changing the tax regime is needed to be serious about Suffolk's farming sector, but stressed although the Government's proposals weren't good, they were an attempt to fix it.

From the council's Labour group, Cllr Sandy Martin said the motion was a 'political yah-boo attack' on the new Government.

He added: "Labour councillors in this chamber are absolutely committed to the importance of agriculture, not just for our county but for our country as well.

“Anything we say or do must not be taken as an attack on farmers, it absolutely isn’t.”

He added other problems were behind the state of the farming sector, including the effects of Brexit and the inflated cost of new land.

Ultimately the nearly two-hour debate saw councillors from all political colours rally behind the opposition to the proposals, with 56 votes for, four against, and one abstention.

The motion committed not only to writing to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves MP, and energy secretary, Ed Miliband MP, setting out the council's opposition but also inviting representatives from the Suffolk branch of the National Farmer's Union to discuss how the council could further support local farmers.