A PETITION co-launched by Exmoor farmer and agri-tech entrepreneur James Wright was presented on Tuesday (December 17) to The Treasury by Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch and Shadow Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) Secretary Victoria Atkins.

Mr Wright, who is chairman of the Conservative Party’s South West Rural Forum, has been leading a fight against the Labour Government’s family farm tax and to date has gathered 215,465 signatures on the petition.

Mr Wright said the Labour tax was a ‘vindictive and cruel policy that will devastate farmers and threaten Britain’s food security’.

The ‘Stop The Family Farm Tax’ petition refers to Labour’s plan to abolish inheritance tax relief on agricultural land, a mechanism which has allowed family farms, which generally operate on small margins, to be passed down through the generations without crippling tax bills.

Farmers said they feared removing the relief would force many farms to sell land, split up businesses, and lay off workers just to cover the extra tax demands.

The ‘Stop The Family Farm Tax’ petition co-launched by Exmoor farmer James Wright.
The ‘Stop The Family Farm Tax’ petition co-launched by Exmoor farmer James Wright. ( )

They said it would hit small, family-run farms the hardest, leading to fewer British farms and a greater reliance on imported food.

Mr Wright said as the petition was being delivered: “Labour betrayed farmers at their first Budget, and now they refuse to face the damage their policies are causing.

“Labour MPs failed to vote with the Conservatives to scrap this cruel family farm tax, but every day this vindictive policy unravels further.

“As Kemi Badenoch laid out at the Business Property Relief Summit, the latest analysis is clear, Labour’s family farm tax will cost more than it raises and lead to over 125,000 job losses.

“Chancellor Rachel Reeves and Defra Secretary Steve Reed are willingly destroying farming and family businesses at a net cost to the taxpayer.

“Three-quarters of farms will be hit, forcing farms to be split up and sold off.

“This reckless policy puts Britain’s food security at risk.

“Labour must get a grip and face the reality of their appalling choices.”

The petition, which remains open for anybody who still wants to add their voice, can be found here.