MPs call for apology to farmers after tax U-turn

TREASURY minister has faced repeated calls to apologise, after the Government announced eleventh-hour changes to inheritance taxes affecting farmers.

- WILL MEAKIN-DURRANT AND RHIANNON JAMES

Dan Tomlinson defended the decision to announce a tax on farmers who pass on assets worth more than £1 million, before easing this threshold to £2.5 million in Christmas week.

He said the Treasury had reached the “right place” on farmers’ inheritance tax.

Conservative shadow environment secretary Victoria Atkins said the change had come “simply too late” for some people in rural communities.

She used an urgent question to summon Mr Tomlinson to the despatch box, as MPs returned to the Commons after the recess.

“The Government has announced these changes after listening carefully to feedback from the farming community and family businesses” Mr Tomlinson said.

He told the Commons the number of estates affected by the changes to agricultural property relief (APR) from inheritance tax was “expected to halve - from what would have been 375 to just 185 estates”

Farmers have previously had a full relief from inheritance tax when they pass on their agricultural assets.

‘They will continue to be exempt from inheritance tax on their agricultural assets up to a value of £2.5 million.

Ms Atkins said: “This U-turn acknowledges what farmers have been telling the Government from day one - ministers have got their maths badly wrong and many more farms and family businesses will be broken up as a result of Labour's higher taxes.