Yesterday Graham Stuart spoke in another Westminster Hall Debate on the Family Farm Tax where he asked the Government to listen to farmers and the British public and reverse the disastrous policy.
In her Budget on the 30th October, the Chancellor announced her ruinous plans to impose a 20% tax on the value of land exceeding policy; a policy that has come to be known as the Family Farm Tax. The Family Farm Tax will wreck a system which provides British people with excellent food at among the lowest prices in Europe.
In that time, 270,000 people have signed the NFU’s petition calling for the Chancellor to think again. 148,000 people signed the petition they debated in Parliament and 1039 people in Beverley and Holderness signed Graham’s petition calling for the protection of family farms. During the debate, Graham reminded MPs that in February 2023 the Government told the NFU that they, “deserve a government that listens.” Yet despite widespread opposition to their proposals, they refuse to do so.
While the Government refuses to listen, Graham has heard the concerns of farmers loud and clear. Last month he visited Bygot House Farm near Cherry Burton where he met Rebecca and Ian Webb. The farm has been in their family for generations, but they are concerned that Labour’s Family Farm Tax threatens this. They hope to pass the farm on to their 9-year-old son Richard, who is already mucking in, but fear that, many years from now, Richard may find himself using the farm’s profits not to reinvest and grow the business but to pay a tax bill.
Graham has also listened to his constituents Owen and Tudor Williams, who he met at the Farmers Protest in Westminster before the debate. Tudor has rented his farm for 60 years and hopes to pass it on to his son Owen, but Owen fears that by the time he finishes his farming career he’ll be worse off as a result of the Family Farm Tax than he is today. This is why Graham is committed to persuading the Government to stop the family farm tax.
He has already been a strong voice for farmers locally. In response to the proposed tax, he launched a petition to allow residents of Beverley and Holderness to express their support for local farmers and their opposition to the Family Farm Tax. The petition has received over 1,000 signatures, reflecting strong community backing.
In Westminster, Graham has actively worked to overturn the Government’s plans for the Family Farm Tax. He has participated in three farmers’ marches, demonstrating his solidarity with the agricultural community, and hosted a roundtable discussion with farmers to gain deeper insights into how these measures would affect their livelihoods. He also led a cross-party group of MPs from across the UK to explain to the minister why an urgent rethink is needed.
Graham Stuart, Member of Parliament for Beverley and Holderness, commented, “The Prime Minister told the NFU that they deserve a Government that listens. The Family Farm Tax will wreck a system which provides British people with the best food in the world at among the lowest prices in Europe. Farmers know it, the British people know it, even his own MPs know it. It’s time for him to do the right thing and stop the family farm tax.
