Thank you to all NFU members who continue to actively campaign on this crucial issue. Every email, letter, conversation, farm visit and meeting really makes a difference and we are starting to see this reflected in MPs’ actions as the Finance Bill makes it way through Parliament.
At a moment’s notice, hundreds of NFU members rallied together and sprang into action on Tuesday afternoon to contact their MP and urge them to abstain after the NFU heard from sources in Westminster that there would be a vote that evening.
The vote wasn't binding, but abstentions demonstrate that backbench MPs oppose the current policy, putting more pressure on the government to make amendments.
If your MP is on the list of those that abstained, you can use our write to your MP tool below to thank them for their work.
Send a message of thanks to your MP
Mounting opposition
There has been mounting opposition to the family farm tax.
More than 275,000 members of the public have called on the government to make changes to the policy; trade associations representing 160,000 family businesses wrote to the Chancellor calling for reform to the policy; MPs from across the political divide have told the Chancellor about the impact it will have on the rural communities they represent; and independent tax experts have suggested changes to make it more targeted.
During the debates following last week’s budget, more and more Labour MPs have spoken out against the family farm tax.
Commenting on the vote, NFU President Tom Bradshaw said: “I’d like to thank all the Labour MPs who have stood up to show that they cannot support this pernicious policy.
“These MPs are the rural representatives of the Labour Party. They represent the working people of the countryside and have spoken up on behalf of their constituents. It is vital that the Chancellor and Prime Minister listen to the clear message they have delivered this evening.
“I’d also like to thank the farmers and growers who took the time to engage with their MPs to get the message out there.
“The next step in the fight against the family farm tax is removing the elderly and terminally ill from the eye of the storm of this unjust and unfair policy.”
More Labour MPs speak out
In the run up to the vote, even more Labour MPs have joined their colleagues in speaking out against this unjust policy, calling on the government to reconsider and listen to the farmers they represent.
Penrith and Solway MP Markus Campbell-Savours told the House he would stand by his farming constituents and vote against the resolution. He reminded the House of Labour’s promise before before the election not to change APR and said that he would keep his word.
South Derbyshire MP Samantha Niblett said “we have lost the trust of our farmers” and pleaded with the government to look again at the changes to APR and BPR. She also highlighted the “distress and strain” that the anti-forestalling clause is putting on elderly farmers.
Terry Jermy, MP for South West Norfolk, warned that the “future of farming in this country depends on this government’s policy being right”, while Jayne Kirkham, MP for Truro and Falmouth, also highlighted the importance of farmers for food security and national security.
James Naish, the MP for Rushcliffe, urged the government to listen to those backbenchers who have consistently called for changes to the family farm tax.
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