MPs appeal to chancellor to reverse agricultural policies

A cross-party missive signed by each of Northern Ireland's MPs has been sent to Chancellor Rachel Reeves.

They are calling connected her to reconsider her plans to alteration cultivation spot alleviation (APR) which reduces the magnitude paid erstwhile farmland is passed to the adjacent generation.

It comes arsenic farmers program demonstrations against the proposals successful Northern Ireland and successful London.

Farmer Martin Cunningham, who is among those acceptable to beryllium affected, spoke to BBC News NI.

Martin has ever dreamed of taking connected his family's workplace successful the Belfast Hills and gathering connected what his great-grandfather started.

But helium says the Budget announcement ending APR connected inheritance taxation has ended that.

"If this farm’s handed down to me, I'll person an unthinkable taxation measure to pay," Mr Cunningham said.

"I'll person to merchantability onshore successful bid to wage that, I'm going to person to merchantability onshore implicit the worth of £200,000," helium said.

"It's not elemental to merchantability onshore up here, it's either each oregon nothing."

Since 1984, APR has allowed onshore utilized for crops oregon raising animals, arsenic good arsenic workplace buildings, cottages and houses, to beryllium exempt from inheritance tax.

From April 2026, it volition lone use to the archetypal £1m of the estate, with thing implicit that worth taxed astatine 20% - fractional the accustomed rate.

Research by the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs suggests a 3rd of farmers successful Northern Ireland volition beryllium affected, with the dairy assemblage peculiarly severely hit.

The mean workplace successful Northern Ireland is astir 100 acres and onshore values have risen successful caller years.

For Mr Cunningham, this means the worth of his family's almost-200 acres unsocial puts the workplace implicit the £1m tax-free bracket.

That's earlier immoderate equipment, workplace buildings and location are taken into account.

The imaginable of a six-figure measure has him worried.

"I don't cognize however we could ever rise that money," Mr Cunningham said.

"I presently person a full-time job, and my dada farms present himself," helium said.

"I don't cognize however we could spend to wage a taxation bill, wage disconnected our indebtedness and proceed to farm. It conscionable doesn't marque consciousness anymore."

Mr Cunningham says similar galore farmers, his household person perpetually invested successful the farm.

"We person been crippled with indebtedness this past fewer years, expanding our cattle numbers, expanding our land, improving our onshore and gathering caller buildings, it’s been a existent large measure for america to get over," helium said.

"So portion we're inactive successful debt, we've been adding to the value, and truthful present it seems that we person fixed ourselves a taxation bill."

Speaking to BBC Radio Foyle’s North West Today programme connected Monday, husbandman Ian Buchannan said helium believes changes to inheritance taxation volition beryllium “the last straw that has breached the camel’s back” for galore farmers.

Mr Buchannan, who has a workplace extracurricular Dungiven, County Londonderry, said he, similar galore different farmers, are precise acrophobic implicit what this volition mean for the aboriginal of farming successful Northern Ireland.

“The instrumentality we get connected an concern connected a farm, accidental it is worthy 1 cardinal oregon 2 cardinal pounds, immoderate the workplace worth is, it is good known that the instrumentality connected that is 0.5% nett net per twelvemonth – which is peanuts,” helium said.

“60%-80% of each workplace income implicit the past 10 years successful Northern Ireland comes from subsidies."

“Farms are similar parcels that are passed down; you don’t unfastened it but you conscionable walk it connected – farms are not mostly sold unless a [family] enactment dies out," Mr Buchannan said.

“This is incredibly pugnacious for a batch of farmers and I bash consciousness determination is simply a batch of intelligence accent wrong the community.”

Farmers from crossed the UK are preparing for a rally successful London connected Tuesday, calling connected the Chancellor Rachel Reeves to reverse the changes.

But the Treasury has rejected proposals that would soften the impact.

Mr Cunningham is bittersweet and angry.

"I person a passionateness for farming. It's each I know. It's each I privation to know," helium said.

"Feeding the state is what we're each astir to the highest modular successful the world, and it's going to decorativeness successful 1 generation."