I've thought about quitting after crazy farming tax raid and short-sighted employer NI rises

A FARMER has told how he considered quitting the family business because of Chancellor Rachel Reeves' "crazy" tax raid.

- Steph Spyro

Former gin distiller Oli Stokes runs his parents' 40-year-old Farndon Fields farm in Market Harborough, Leicestershire.

He said his initial reaction to the Budget that imposed inheritance tax on farmers and stung them with higher national insurance contributions was "shock and a complete loss of confidence".

Oli, 33, said: "Initially, it felt like 'Hang on, is this the popular opinion?' Because why would a Government do this to all businesses and farmers. It felt like an attack on a way of life.

"For me personally, I'm succeeding in my parents' business. We're in that transition now. They're retiring and I'm trying to take that on for a second generation but for a couple of weeks I was really, really re-evaluating that decision because where does it end?

"If they keep tightening the screw and taking away subsidies on the farming side, and not doing anything to inspire confidence in consumers or businesses, it felt like 'Right, it's getting harder and harder.'

Oli, who employs 70 people on the 500-acre farm owned by his dad Kevin and mum Milly, told how his biggest concern in the short-term was the hike in employer national insurance. He warned this could lead to fewer younger people being hired, job cuts and increased prices at the farm shop and restaurant.