Bedfordshire farming leader highlights new independent research criticising family farm tax plans and calls on government to engage
A Bedfordshire farming leader is highlighting new research from tax analysts as she calls on the government to scrap its family farm tax plans.
A new report by independent research centre CenTax states that the government’s planned inheritance tax reforms will not achieve its goal of tackling the issue of people buying farmland to avoid tax.
The report concludes that the changes could be better targeted to protect working farms.
Since last year’s Budget, the NFU has raised members’ concerns that the current policy will not achieve its intentions of removing the incentive to shelter wealth in farmland, protecting family farms or generating as much revenue as it should. The NFU has also stressed the burden this tax places on elderly farmers within the community.
CenTax has agreed that the policy needs changes to deliver the government’s intentions and has proposed a number of amendments.
NFU Bedfordshire and Huntingdonshire Chair Freya Morgan, who farms near Bedford, said: “This is further evidence from independent tax experts highlighting how the government’s planned changes to inheritance tax have been seriously miscalculated and do not achieve what they set out to achieve.
“This comes after the Efra Committee has concluded the inheritance tax proposals are not fit for purpose, the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) has stated that the government’s plans leave elderly farmers horribly exposed with no time to make necessary changes to their businesses and rural business leaders continue to highlight the devastating impact the family farm tax could have on the entire rural economy.
“The government cannot continue to ignore this independent expert analysis and evidence.
“It still has time to do the right thing and reconsider its damaging and seriously miscalculated proposals.
“I urge the government to consider the NFU’s alternative clawback proposal, which is much fairer system, would rise significant funds for the Treasury, actually tackles the issue of people buying land to avoid tax and does not threaten the future of family farm businesses and the entire rural economy.”
NFU President Tom Bradshaw said: “We welcome this detailed report by CenTax which recognises that working farms will be disproportionately affected by this tax. This is not a fair and balanced approach to reform and does little to counter those who seek to shelter wealth from inheritance tax by simply investing in farmland.
“There are interesting adjustments within the report that appear to mitigate the impacts on the most vulnerable in our community and enable farms to invest in the future of food production with greater confidence.
“We think this new independent analysis presents a positive and timely opportunity ahead of the Finance Bill for fresh conversations with government and officials that would allow us all to work together to address issues of fairness and affordability within the proposals. The NFU urges government to grasp this opportunity.”