Furious farmers release new video warning they ‘don’t believe Starmer anymore’

The UK’s largest farming organisation has said its members “don’t believe Keir Starmer” anymore, furious at the announcement in today’s Budget that inheritance tax relief for farms will be limited to £1m.

Farmers were also enraged by the government’s decision to freeze annual agricultural budget at £2.4billion, which they say is a real-terms cut.

The National Farmers Union (NFU) wrote in a post on X today that “in 2023 Keir Starmer looked farmers in the eye and said he knew what losing a farm meant. Farmers believed him. After today’s budget they don’t believe him any more.”

It was accompanied by a clip of the Prime Minister addressing its conference last year, telling members, “losing a farm is not like losing any other business, it can’t come back.

He then laid into the then-Tory government saying: “That’s why the lack of urgency from the government, the lack of attention to detail, the lack of long-term planning, it’s not on. You deserve better than that.”

The Chancellor announced today that, though there would still be no inheritance tax due on combined business and agricultural assets worth less than £1m, assets valued above £1m would have 50% relief, at an effective rate of 20%, starting from April 2026, as per BBC News.

Many more farmers were previously given a tax break under Agricultural Property Relief (APR) – a policy specifically designed to protect family-run farms by reducing the tax burden they face, so they don’t have to sell their main income source to pay the bill.

Farmers now say only the smallest farms will be covered, and their children may have to consider another trade as the inheritence tax hike will make taking on many family farms unviable.

Jeremy Clarkson, presenter of TV programme Clarkson’s Farm, was among those hammering the move, but told farmers to “just look after yourselves for five short years and this shower will be gone”, referring to the Labour government.

Meanwhile, Country Land and Business Association President Victoria Vyvyan said: “Labour has made repeated assurances over the last 12 months that it would not tamper with inheritance tax reliefs, and its decision to now rip the rug from under farmers is nothing short of a betrayal.”

The government said the change announced today was only expected to affect some 2,000 estates per year, and it is committed to supporting the sector and “the vital role” farmers “play to feed our nation”.

In response to the budget, Tom Bradshaw, president of the NFU said it had been “disastrous” for family farmers.

“The shameless breaking of clear promises on agricultural property relief will snatch away the next generation’s ability to carry on producing British food, plan for the future and shepherd the environment,” he seethed.

A Labour source said the £2.4bn farming budget in 2025/26 will include the largest ever budget directed at sustainable food production and nature’s recovery ever in the UK, as well as £1.8bn for environmental land management schemes to boost Britain’s food security and accelerate the transition to a more resilient and sustainable farming sector.

The government says it is prioritising directing investment to environmental land management schemes, to boost nature and sustainable food production, while Environmental Land Management schemes will remain at the centre of their offer to farmers, with SFI, Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier and Landscape Recovery all set to continue.

Up to £400 million across this financial year and the next has also been pledged for tree planting and peatland restoration, while a further £70 million in 2025-26 will be allocated to support nature’s recovery while delivering infrastructure and housing.

Included in the latter is a £14 million to establish a new model for developer contributions to strategically address the environmental impact of development, and £13 million to expand Protected Sites Strategies in priority areas, the source said, noting the continued investment was being made in “challenging” economic context.