On Friday, I met Edd who farms in High Legh.
Although the government have partly u-turned on Inheritance Tax for smaller farms, the sector is still under incredible pressure.
Edd is an arable farmer, who also contracts for other farmers. On top of the increased costs affecting all businesses (increases in minimum wage, National Insurance for employers etc) the cost of red diesel and fertiliser have both doubled this year, directly affecting farmers.
Grain prices haven’t risen - so there is no way to recover those increased costs. Many farmers already work 90 hours a week at this time of year. A poor harvest would be a really significant problem for many farmers.
If that wasn’t enough pressure, in January this anti-farming government will be introducing a Carbon Border Adjustment Tax. It was announced in Rachel Reeves’ first budget as part of the UK’s nonsensical net zero drive.
What that means is between £50-£100 a tonne being added to the cost of fertiliser. Virtually all nitrogen fertiliser is imported as we don’t have large scale producers in the UK. What is that tax meant to achieve- other than pushing even more farms to the brink?
I have been lobbying against the tax and have requested a debate on the pressures farming is under.