Government make food shortage contingency plans as farmers threaten to strike over inheritance tax
Ministers are drawing up food shortage contingency plans for UK supermarkets following farmers’ threats to strike in protest of the new inheritance tax hike.
Campaigners in the farming industry have warned the government that farmers have “nothing to lose” after the announcement in last month’s Budget of a 20% levy against inheritance agriculture land worth more than £1m.
Up to 20,000 farmers are preparing to protest outside Parliament this Tuesday, while campaigners warned that other strike activity may include more drastic measures such as blockade of ports, airports and railway lines.
However, environment secretary Steve Reed told The Telegraph that there would not be a U-turn on the inheritance tax policy, and said farmers should “check the facts”.
It is understood the officials in the farming sector will meet with the government this week to discuss the potential impact of any impending strikes on supermarket food supplies.
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The transport secretary Louise Haigh said the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs would be drawing up back-up plans to see that “food security is treated as the priority it deserves to be”.
Arable farmer and organiser of Tuesday’s upcoming rallies, Clive Bailye told the publication that he expects major disruption if the government doesn’t reverse the policy.
Bailye said: “We have people now where they feel like they have nothing to lose, this is the final straw. They don’t care if they go to prison. That’s what I’m hearing from some farmers.”
It is not the first time UK farmers have protested this year. In January, suppliers held a rally outside the House of Parliament to call for the government to force the ‘big six’ supermarkets to reform their relationships with fruit and veg suppliers, while in March 200 farmers came together to drive through Canterbury in Kent with tractors to protest against foreign food imports.
The big 6 supermarkets have been contacted for comment.
4 Comments. Leave new
The farmers will lose my support and sympathy if I can’t get my groceries from my supermarket.
How sad never mind. If farmers go under where will you get your meat and veg?
Why should farmers get exemption from IHT that nobody else gets and no other business gets? There was no such exemption until 1984, and the world didn’t fall apart – indeed family farms thrived better before then. This is just sheer greed being whipped up by large landowners who’ve been using it as a tax avoidance device.
Farmers should strike for a whole month solid in December up to new yr even although they should pay tax like anyone else give the government and labour a real kicking and farmers should show they mean business also bloke suppliers at ports etc