Government 'seems intent on burying agriculture'

FARMERS have condemned the Government for "destroying" the sector by imposing crippling tax bills and refusing to engage in meaningful dialogue.

- ELEANOR BURLEIGH

> Somerset farmer Charlie Walford

(Lewis Clarke)

A third-generation farmer from Somerset, facing a bill exceeding £1 million when he takes over the family farm from his father, has participated in a protest outside the Labour conference in Liverpool in an effort to protect the agricultural land he had expected his children would one day inherit.

Charlie Walford, 43, is set to assume control of the 400-acre mixed arable and beef operation, purchased by his family in 1949, before eventually passing it on.

Previous generations have transferred the property to their heirs without any tax burden, but following Labour's inheritance tax (IHT) reforms taking effect next April, he faces a 20% levy. With a land valuation of £3m, Upton Bridge Farm sits considerably above the £1m threshold for IHT implementation, from which agricultural assets were previously exempt.

The difficulty is that Charlie’s family generates only a 1% return on investment, with the operation producing a taxable profit of just £12,000 in 2023.

"I'm looking at an invoice from HMRC of just over £1m to inherit the farm,’ he told the Express.