Labour’s dangerous farming tax will raise food prices this Christmas

Mims Davies – Shadow Welsh Secretary

“Labour’s latest tax on farming is an existential threat to their livelihoods” – these dire words and heartbreaking conversations reverberated across Westminster this afternoon.

This coupled with a clear reflection on prices and other misguided decisions in Labour’s Budget of broken promises will hike food costs and threatens family Christmases.

Farmers from the Welsh hills and mountains joined thousands of others this week in descending on the British capital to voice their desperation and pleas for the Labour UK government to drop its latest tax raid which will affect 66% of British farms in just two years’ time.

‘Clobbered’

Under the plan, any family member who inherits a farm worth more than £1 million will be clobbered with a 20% inheritance tax bill. Past Conservative governments had prevented this from happening because we know just how important farmers are to our national security.

During this week’s protest, farmers from across the length and breadth of Britain warned of an impending exodus, if the tax goes ahead.

But according to Sir Keir Starmer – the new Prime Minister who is not known for his accuracy or for sticking to commitments – continues to say the move will not impact “the vast majority” of Welsh farmers – We know this is not true.

And, to add further insult, the Labour First Minister, Baroness Elunedd Morgan, has patronised worried farmers, calling on them to “calm down a bit”.

Whim

A cloth-eared reaction to a key sector for Wales. Belittling the work 24/365 days a year our dedicated farming families put into to feeding the nation.

Farmers would like to know how she would react if her livelihood, home and life’s work were being put at risk with no notice, consultation and frankly on a whim.

It really angers me to see how badly Labour is treating our farmers and damaging Wales. We are now in a situation where both Labour governments on either side of the M4 are actively working in tandem to hold Wales back from its true potential.

Many may not have noticed but last week marked 100 days since Elunedd Morgan
became first minister. And what has happened to Wales since then?

Her government is supporting Starmer’s move to raid family-run farms, the overall Welsh NHS waiting-list has increased by almost 10,000, unemployment is growing by the hour, and countless post offices are now throwing in the towel.

Battered

It’s clear both Labour governments have run out of ideas, and they are destroying experiences and opportunities for the people of Wales by the day. Farmers say: Enough is enough. We Conservatives stand with them.

The planned tax raid on our farmers needs to be ditched immediately. We must
oppose it because, if farms in Wales and beyond start disappearing, our rural economy will take a battering and there will be no coming back.

And let’s not forget: without farmers, we will have no food, no food security, no future custodians of our landscapes – it’s as simple as that.

Mims Davies is the Shadow Secretary of State for Wales and Shadow Minister for
Women.