No farmers would vote Labour if election was tomorrow, poll finds
No farmers would vote for Labour if a general election was held tomorrow, a new poll has revealed.
It also found that almost four in five farmers are worried about the survival of their business over the next decade.
The poll of 490 farming members of the Country Land and Business Association (CLA), published in The Times, found that 38 per cent would vote Conservative and 36 per cent Reform UK.
However, while 21 per cent said they didn’t know who they would vote for, not a single CLA member said they would vote Labour.
It comes after Rachel Reeves’ changes to inheritance tax rules has led to outrage from the sector, and a number of protests in Westminster.
From next April, farmers will have to pay a reduced rate of 20 per cent when handing down agricultural business assets of more than £1m.
They were previously exempt from inheritance tax to allow family farms to be passed down the generations.
The Treasury has claimed that very few farms will be affected, however agricultural groups have said that farmers are asset rich and cash poor and could be forced to sell land.
The poll found that 40 per cent of farming CLA members “strongly agree” and 38 per cent “agree” with the phrase: “I am worried that my business will not survive the next 10 years.”
Almost all respondents said they had paused or delayed investment following the inheritance tax changes, and more than two-thirds said they would have to sell land or take out loans to keep their farm going.
Victoria Vyvyan, president of the CLA, said: “The Treasury says these reforms will barely touch rural Britain.
“Our polling shows they will force hard choices on farms that have sustained communities for generations — selling their land, laying people off, shelving plans for the future.
“Already families are weighing up which parts of their business they can afford to keep. Some are holding back investment, others are wondering if they can hand the farm on at all.
“Rural Labour MPs can see what’s coming. They know it will drain the life from the countryside and strip away the trust of the people who sent them to Westminster. If they support it, their voters won’t forget.”
The cross-party Efra Committee, which covers farming and has a majority of Labour MPs, has called on the Government to back the CLA’s proposal to use a clawback mechanism with inheritance tax.
This would see tax applied at the full 40 per cent rate on inherited assets sold within a certain time period post-death if the proceeds are not reinvested into farming businesses.
A Government spokesperson said: “A clawback mechanism would raise less revenue, make tax complexity worse and would not address ultra wealthy non-farming landowners using this relief to avoid paying higher tax elsewhere.”
They added: “The latest data shows that 40 per cent of Agricultural Property Relief - worth £219m - was directed to just 117 estates.
“The money raised will go towards public services we all rely on daily instead.”