Welsh union is the latest to push back against UK government’s Budget announcements
NFU Cymru has warned the UK government that its “misguided and ill thought-out tax reforms” must be reversed to protect family farms.
The Welsh farming union’s president Aled Jones took to the stage at the organisation’s annual conference in Llandrindod Wells, Powys, on 7 November, to address conerns over changes to Agricultural Property Relief (APR) and Business Property Relief (BPR).
“There is no doubt that the decision by the Chancellor in last week’s Budget to introduce a tax on the passing on of our family farms to the next generation will leave many farmers with neither the means, confidence nor the incentive to invest in the future of their business, Jones said.
“The changes announced are not only a threat to our family farm structure and our tenanted sector but also to our nation’s food security. This from a government who, just a few short months ago, told us that ‘food security is national security’.
“Let me be clear: taxation on land for the production of food should not be allowed. This misguided and ill thought-out tax reform must be reversed.”
Amid the ongoing challenge to the UK government following its Budget announcement last week, NFU Cymru is also calling for the Welsh Government’s upcoming draft budget announcement to provide the sector with some much-needed stability.
“While the past week has been dominated by the Westminster budget, our attention is also very much focussed on December’s draft budget in Cardiff Bay,” Jones added. “Last week’s budget announcement confirmed that the funding for agriculture from 2024-25 has now been baselined in each devolved government’s block grant, which we understand to mean that around £340m should be forthcoming from the Treasury block grant to Welsh Government for agricultural support.
“In NFU Cymru’s view, this very much puts the ball in the Welsh Government’s court when it comes to setting its draft budget next month including, of course, the provision it makes for agricultural support. We now look to see the budget cuts made to the Rural Affairs budget last autumn reinstated in full, maintaining the BPS at current levels for 2025, alongside a range of interventions to support the industry to meet the significant investment costs required to meet our environmental responsibilities.”
