Latest news with #OllyHarrison
Otago Daily Times
29-07-2025
- Business
- Otago Daily Times
Farms not always just for farming
Lancashire agribusinessman Olly Harrison makes more money from outside income than from his cropping business, Tim Cronshaw writes. United Kingdom's farming YouTuber Olly Harrison has developed 14 different income streams, but the "bleak" truth is off-farm businesses are the only ones making a profit. The agri-businessman has a large YouTube following of nearly 150,000 subscribers on the online video sharing platform. Among his many income earners are his OllyBlogsAgricontractfarmer channel, cropping, dog walking fields, a pet hotel, chipping tree waste for biomass, sunflower mazes and office and holiday rentals. The charismatic farmer often had an audience in fits of laughter as he took them through his many businesses during a speech via video link at a Foundation for Arable Research (FAR) conference at Lincoln University. Mr Harrison said the future of agriculture was in a difficult place in the UK, particularly in the cereal sector, as the economics did not stack up. Fertiliser and chemical costs are up and the price of wheat at about $337 a tonne is at a three- or four-year low. "We either have to sell it better or stop growing it or carry on what I've been doing for the last 10 years thinking the next year is going to be a better year ... It is very much crunch time at the moment. The government incentive for sustainable farming is sort of propping the farm up for three years." Only YouTube and other outside income had allowed him to expand the farm. "The percentage of the turnover, I would say it's around 50/50 [farm versus off-farm income] and we are still farming a considerable acreage and turning over lots of cash. "Basically the income is 50/50 in turnover, but the profits are 100% definitely from the diversification." The Government's Sustainable Farm Initiative (SFI) scheme had worked well for him, but new applicants were no longer being accepted and it was looking "bleak" he said. "Diversification seems to be the only way at the moment." Some of his business ventures had been more successful than others — such as buying three motor homes during Covid-19 to rent out. "They were a little bit of a hassle because people kept crashing them ... I think anything involving not many staff is good because staff can be hard work. "We have dog walking fields and I know that sounds pretty strange, but we have fields fenced off with deer netting and you hire them by the hour and people pay £10 ($NZ22) to let the dog run around off the lead. That is by far the most profitable bit of diversification because it paid for the land in six months that it's on, but you do have to deal with the public, and that can be hard work." Since leaving school at 16 after struggling with dyslexia, he has built up a farm to about 600ha. He grows about 320ha acres of wheat and a lot of barley, 60ha in spring beans as well as grass, sunflowers and oil seed rape — a difficult crop to grow now because of seed dressing restrictions. Spring flowers are also sown, mainly for wild bird food seed as part of a SFI incentive on 400ha at about $585 an acre. After checking the SFI guidelines, he began double cropping this about five years ago, harvesting barley two to three weeks earlier in June and barley again in October. "I thought I would push the boundaries a bit with this and drill a crop immediately after harvest if we harvest early and broadcast it into the standing crop and let the birds harvest it in the winter, and then I would drill winter wheat as soon as I possibly can." When his SFI agreement ends in 18 months he plans to harvest some of the crops himself for a blend to sell in garden centres and perhaps by mail order on a subscription-based model. "Because if you get someone on subscription, it's harder not to buy it than it is to buy it. I've seen a few people do it with eggs and veg boxes so I just thought I like combines and I like growing cereals, so why can't it work for cereals? And that's probably my next venture." Energy options also appeal to him. On the farm, he tries to use no tillage as much as possible, putting crops in with a 12m drill on a combine followed by a 36m sprayer. Branching off into business outside of farming began in 2006, when he borrowed money to convert old brick buildings, formerly housing cattle, into office space. Mr Harrison said the development had provided regular income for the past 20 years at the urban fringe property near Liverpool, and this had been much needed over "turbulent times" for crop prices. Solar panels installed on the top of south-facing grain store sheds from 2015 means they are self-sufficient in electricity, with surplus power sold back to the grid. He said a big part of the business was recycling tree waste provided from city gardeners and tree surgeons, which kept them busy over winter. "They have nowhere to put that tree waste so they bring it to us and we process it and it used to go to power stations, but now we use a lot of it ourselves in a biomass boiler we use then to dry our own grain." A commercial grain store used to be filled with oilseed rape, but the crop has become so difficult to grow in the UK a replacement crop will need to be found the storage may move into imported animal feeds coming from the Liverpool port. Another business set up with an ex-girlfriend about eight years ago made great use of sandstone barns as a small animal hotel. Little used now, he still considers it a good business option after a cheap renovation kitted it out with rabbit hutches and animal runs for holidaymakers housing pets at $33 a day. "Talk about a fool and their money easily parted — one person actually brought a pigeon while they were away and that was around for about six months and [cost them] $4500 for this pigeon with a broken wing. It was a very good business because there were lots of people for cats and dogs, but no-one was really specialising in small animals like hamsters, guinea pigs and predominantly rabbits." By accident, the innovative farmer invented a seed sock to clean a seed drill without putting all the contents on a floor. His neighbour makes Bouncy Castles and he got him to make a 3m-square sheet with a hole in the middle to act as a spout from offcuts. Farmers seeing the sock on his YouTube channel made inquiries about buying one, which spawned a manufacturing business with another company distributing them. Mr Harrison gains income from merchandise sales on his YouTube channel after a company approached him to manufacture, sell and distribute sales. But he ended up getting too many order requests and updates himself, so he brought it in-house and today it turns over $225,000 a year. At a nearby farm he rented for about 12 years, he noticed a digger doing test holes and learned it was for sale for $2.7 million for 30ha. So he arranged finance to buy the property, including a house and full set of farm buildings. "But I didn't know what to do with it and I wasn't sure what to do with the buildings and didn't want to borrow more money to convert them into offices — which do really well because we are so close to the city — so while I was finding my feet randomly this girl turned up in the yard to put her horse somewhere while she was at university at vet school." Realising vet intakes were mostly women, often with horses, he drew up plans to convert them into stables and rent the farmhouse as student accommodation. When Covid-19 arrived halfway through developing the stables, he changed tack as there was a huge demand for holiday lets, so he upped the specs for the living quarters, and after putting in a hot tub it "absolutely flew" when they put it on Airbnb. Another opportunistic tumble into business was after a visit to Ukraine before the Russian conflict, when he marvelled at the miles and miles of snowy-white fields from the window of a train. A translator told him it was even better when sunflower crops were in flower. That spring he replaced a 2ha field of wheat chewed out by rabbits with sunflowers after going to the garden centre. He showed photos on social media and a friend's wife suffering from cancer asked for a bunch; he worked out there would have been value in the flowers if they were not so busy harvesting grain. In a brainwave, he wondered if the public might buy unharvested plots of sunflowers so birds could feed on them over winter — well before the taxpayer-funded SFI was introduced. Realising they were more likely to give him money if it was for charity, he started a JustGiving fundraiser page. "I needed a charity so I Googled the words sunflower, charity and Liverpool and what pops up is the Liverpool Sunflower Cancer Charity. That was brilliant, as I had just been with someone that has got cancer." Overnight, after going live, the page raised $13,500. After thinking the sunflower fields would make a good maze, the next year he tried to grow 8ha, but drought left them tatty and another attempt was thwarted by pigeons and slugs. When the BBC contacted him asking if they could film David Attenborough in a sea of sunflowers for a Green Planet programme in 2020, he put in such a good crop that he was finally able to put a good maze in, with half the profits going to a local children's charity and the other half to him. The sunflower maze ended up being a "roaring success", making $225,000. Raising money for charity became addictive, and after seeing a tractor with Christmas lights he organised a convoy to make money for a local children's hospital. The police were unimpressed when the 40 to 50 expected tractors turned out to be so many that some of the procession heading into Liverpool had not left the farm yard by the time the first tractor was several kilometres down the road. More than $115,000 was raised, and the fundraiser has been repeated every year since. In much the same fashion, his entry into posting daily on YouTube started when the local newspaper came to film him from a distance during Covid-19 and asked him to take some footage from his phone while explaining what he was doing on a tractor while rolling wheat. He put the same video on Instagram and Facebook and when it was well received, did another small video the next day and each day after. School teachers approached him asking if they could use it for online learning and he put them on YouTube and sent a link. The channel has grown to just under 150,000 subscribers, with daily posts candidly showing the successes and failures, often with his trademark humour. The farmer's 1500-plus videos have been watched more than 77 million times, with his content resonating with farming enthusiasts and urban people curious about rural life. About a year later he ended up rescuing a young man from a flooded car with his tractor during a big flood and it was widely shared. When it was being watched 9000 times a day, he opted to monetise the page, and after waking up the next morning it had earned $3.40. "To me it was like free money." His earnings steadily increased to the stage he calculated the income could cover finance for a new sprayer. More classic tractors followed, which are used on the farm and make the videos more interesting. While looking for a second-hand combine, he was deeply shaken when a friend struggling with depression took his own life. "A mate of mine who was doing a Nuffield scholarship in New Zealand actually told me people were well looked after out there and milk tank drivers [were] trained to spot signs of depression, so we ran a few workshops to try and educate farmers in our local area about mental health and talking about things." When the Claas Lexion combine harvester arrived he told this story to the guy servicing it, who had also lost a good mate to depression. "I said 'this is ridiculous, we need to do something about it' and said 'why don't we drive a combine from John o' Groats to Land's End?'." About seven years passed before they took on the 1500km challenge in four and a-half days, raising $240,000 for charity. His charitable contributions to date total more than $1 million. Mr Harrison was named the International Agricultural Influencer for YouTube by the German Agricultural Society, and recognised by the National Farmers' Union as a Community Farming Hero. He has promised to leave a farm to each of his three children. That was complicated in the UK government's Budget last October, when it decided to introduce a 20% tax on agricultural land and business assets on death. "That basically means any farm trying to pass on to the next generation, you have to find 20% of what the whole land is worth — all the buildings, all the livestock, all the inputs, all the stuff in the shed and the field. "As you know with farming there is not 20% around very easily, especially if you have just lost a member of the family at the same time, so it's pretty scandalous and not really possible to do, and there's been an uproar." Thousands of irate farmers staged a mass protest in London. Mr Harrison was among lobby group members who happened to be at the Ducati motorbike factory on the way to attend an agricultural show in Italy. Concerned about the farmers' potential reactions, they quickly contacted police — via Zoom from the Ducati headquarters — who accommodated their requests for a gathering point and stage where protesters could listen to speakers, and provided access to Whitehall Rd. "We came out of this broom cupboard in Italy thinking 'we can't believe we've just shut central London down for the day in a week's time' and that's what we did." Celebrity farmer Jeremy Clarkson was part of the day, attended by about 45,000 farmers, with donations to a food bank reminding the public that farmers are valuable food producers. "The YouTube income has allowed me to expand the farm and it's been great and also allowed me to have bit of a voice when it comes to getting people together and lobbying the government for something that will work better."
Otago Daily Times
27-05-2025
- Business
- Otago Daily Times
Arable farm boasts 14 income streams
An English farmer is proving there's more than one way to squeeze every cent out of an arable operation. Lancashire's Olly Harrison has become a successful farmer and entrepreneur as well as being a popular YouTuber since leaving school at 16 after struggling with dyslexia. He's grown his farm from 70 hectares to 600ha and used earnings from his YouTube channel — OllyBlogsAgricontractfarmer — which has nearly 150,000 subscribers, to build up his machinery fleet. Over the past month, he's put out posts about "flailing off" a roadside verge, inspecting emerging millet and canary grass crops in a drought year, oil leaks in a tractor and the minutiae of farming life. His farming business has 14 different income streams including cropping, dog walking fields, chipping tree waste for biomass, sunflower mazes and office and holiday rentals. The farmer always seeking new ways to commercially get the most out of his land and assets will be one of the main speakers at Foundation for Arable Research's (FAR) two-day two-yearly conference at Lincoln University from June 30. Mr Harrison will be outlining his farming journey via video link. The conference theme of Show Me the Money,will tackle the ongoing concern of profitability as farmers balance greater costs with trying to bring in more income. A range of international and local speakers will combine with FAR staff to outline ways farmers can reduce costs, improve productivity, diversify into additional income streams and adopt new tools and technologies. FAR spokeswoman Anna Heslop said growers provided regular feedback on the financial challenges of increasing input costs, flat crop contract prices, increased regulatory compliance and extreme weather events. Keynote speaker will be New Zealand's special agricultural trade envoy and Methven arable farmer Hamish Marr. He will be accompanied in the lineup by South Australian grain grower James Venning talking about how to make technology pay. Over varying soil types, he uses a wide range of technologies to help his decision-making and to micro-manage areas in his cropping programme focusing on productivity, efficiency and cost effectiveness. The chairman of his local grower group Northern Sustainable Soils, is a board member of the Hart Field Site Group and a grower director of Grain Producers South Australia. Also appearing via video link will be the founding director of the Centre for Evidence Based Agriculture at Harper Adams University in England, Prof Nicola Randall, to discuss whether regenerative agricultural systems add value. Farmer discussion panels will provide examples of different approaches and technologies growers are adopting to improve their farm business performance. A conference dinner will double as a farewell to FAR chief executive Dr Alison Stewart, who steps down at the end of June. Who is Olly Harrison? United Kingdom farmer and entrepreneur Olly Harrison is the face behind popular YouTube channel OllyBlogsAgricontractfarmer. Daily videos starting in the Covid-19 lockdown provide an insight into the challenges and triumphs of farming, marked by humour and diversification stories to fund his "tractor addiction". His online presence reaches an audience of more than 350,000 followers across his social channels, with 110,000 of them on YouTube. The farmer's 1500-plus videos have been watched more than 77 million times with his content resonating with farming enthusiasts and urban people curious about rural life. Mr Harrison was named the International Agricultural Influencer for YouTube by the German Agricultural Society and recognised by the National Farmers' Union as a Community Farming Hero. His ability to explain the complexities of farming in straightforward language has made him a regular contributor on BBC News and BBC Radio 4. By last year his farming business had 14 different income streams, including a merchandise operation grossing more than £100,000 in 2023. After vowing he would own a brand new combine harvester by the age of 40, and achieving the goal, he decided to drive his Claas Lexion combine from John O'Groats to Land's End for charity. His charitable contributions so far total more than $1 million from events ranging from tractor runs through Liverpool to YouTube fundraisers. He has promised to leave a farm to each of his three children as he continues to build his farming business.
Telegraph
25-05-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
Farmers face losing harvests under Starmer's Brexit reset
Farmers have said they face losing harvests because crucial agricultural chemicals will be banned under Labour's deal with the European Union. The UK will have to ban almost 30 widely used pesticides and fungicides after Sir Keir Starmer committed Britain to following EU laws. Growers warned that removing them could lead to significant falls in food production, further eroding their already tight profit margins. A raft of products will have to be taken off shelves, including treatments to prevent potato blight, which threatened crops during last year's wet winter. The move will be yet another blow to struggling family farmers already reeling from Rachel Reeves's inheritance tax raid. Olly Harrison, a cereal farmer in the North West, said he would have lost his entire potato crop last year had the treatment for potato blight been banned. 'It would be devastating if we had to ban all these products,' he said. 'The UK has taken a more science-led approach since Brexit on pesticides, whereas EU regulation is often based on emotion and green lobbying. 'We need to paddle our own canoe when it comes to food security.' James Wright, a farmer from Exmoor who stood as a Tory candidate at the last election, said many of the pesticides available in Britain are 'cheaper than in the EU'. 'There's a lot of worry, particularly in arable farming at the moment, because the margins are really tight,' he said. 'The arable guys are really struggling at the moment, prices are way down, and this is just another kick.' Britain now faces having to ban the chemicals because previous Tory governments took a lighter touch approach to regulation than the EU after Brexit. The deal Sir Keir agreed with Brussels - under which he also allowed EU fishermen access to British waters for 12 years - explicitly states that pesticide regulations will be covered by the agreement. A paper setting out the 'common understanding' says that the pact 'should ensure the application of the same rules at all times by providing for timely dynamic alignment of the rules applicable to and in the United Kingdom acting in respect of Great Britain with all the relevant European Union rules'. The dossier adds that 'where necessary to ensure the European Union's level of food, sanitary, and phytosanitary safety' this should be done 'through the immediate application of the relevant European Union rules' in the UK. The deal includes scope for Britain to negotiate 'limited exceptions' to following EU regulations, which would have to be agreed with Brussels. But it makes clear these will only be acceptable where they do not 'lead to lower standards as compared to European Union rules' and that they respect the principle that only animals and goods compliant with European Union rules move into the EU. Brussels is renowned for being heavy-handed on pesticides, with farmers accusing the EU Commission of becoming captive to green lobbying groups. As a result a wide gap has grown between the two sides' laws, with the UK allowing the use of 28 existing and new products that the EU has not permitted. Earlier this year, Christophe Hansen, the EU's agriculture commissioner, suggested that Brussels would take a tough line on pesticides in the talks. Addressing farmers in Dublin, he vowed to introduce 'stricter' import controls on crops grown with chemicals banned by Brussels. 'This is something farmers do not understand, consumers do not understand either, and we have to be bolder on that,' he said. In return for Britain following its rules, the EU will drop almost all import checks on agricultural produce, slashing costly red tape for exporters to the continent. Farmers have widely welcomed the improved market access, with the border controls and bureaucracy put in place since Brexit negatively affecting many growers. But they have also warned that dynamic alignment will come with major pitfalls, particularly on pesticides, which are vital to the industry. Hazel Doonan, the head of crop protection and agronomy at the Agricultural Industries Confederation, said one benefit of Brexit had been the UK's nimbler approach to pesticide regulation. She said that four new active substances - two herbicides and two fungicides - had come onto the market in Britain that are still awaiting approval in the EU. Rules on weedkiller She also said there were questions over whether Britain will now have to apply EU conditions on products that are authorised for use. In particular, owing to the UK's wet weather, farmers in the north and west often use glyphosate, a weedkiller, to dry out their crops pre-harvest. The practice helps with harvests and reduces crop drying costs, but it is now banned in the EU. 'We have and will highlight to Defra that if we are to lose some active substances that are currently available then that could mean that growers face, in some areas and for some crops, very few alternatives to tackling weeds, pests and diseases,' she said. Environmental groups welcomed the move as a 'massive win for human health, nature and British farmers' and described the pesticides as 'harmful'. The Pesticide Action Network has compiled a list of 28 products that are banned in the EU but not in the UK, and 15 of them are actively marketed in Britain. Josie Cohen from the charity said: 'The agreement to align with EU pesticide standards is a massive win for human health, nature and British farmers. ' The reset deal draws a line under the past five years during which the UK government has been quietly weakening our national pesticide standards.' Downing Street did not deny that Britain faces having to ban more pesticides, but said the new EU agreement will give ministers input into EU policy making. A Government spokesman said: 'Our new agreement with the EU will support British farming by opening up access to EU markets and making agrifood trade with our biggest trading partner cheaper and easier. 'It will cut red tape and costs, benefitting British producers, retailers and consumers. We will be having detailed negotiations with the EU, and it's important not to get ahead of those discussions.'
Yahoo
04-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Farmers' protest live: Huge combine harvesters arrive in London for Pancake Day rally after police tractor ban
Huge combine harvesters have arrived in London for a 'Pancake Day rally' after police banned tractors from the capital. Thousands of farmers are expected to descend on London today for a protest from Whitehall towards Parliament at midday over inheritance tax changes. The Met Police has banned all 'mechanically propelled vehicles' from London following protests last month that saw hundreds of tractors disrupt traffic across the city. A small number of farming vehicles have been allowed into London with prior permission from the police. It is unclear if the three four-metre tall combine harvesters parked in Whitehall were approved. The march is the latest action being taken by farmers who are unhappy over Labour's plan to bring in a 20 per cent inheritance tax rate on agricultural land and businesses worth more than £1m. Farmer Olly Harrison, one of the organisers, has said the protesters will aim to explain to MPs 'the levels of investment needed in agriculture just to produce something simple like a pancake'. The Lib Dems and the Conservatives have urged Labour to scrap the changes, which are due to come into force from April 2026. Protesting farmers turn up in huge combine harvesters Farmers could be arrested if they drive tractors at rally, police warn Farmers to gather in London for pancake day protest against inheritance tax Third Labour MP speaks out against inheritance tax plans 11:28 , Alexander Butler Labour is pressing ahead with a 20 per cent inheritance tax rate on agricultural land and businesses worth more than £1m, essentially scrapping an exemption which meant no tax was paid to pass down family farms. Farmers say that it will force land sales, stall investment, and hurt families lacking succession plans. But the Government has stood firm, calling the move a 'fair and balanced approach'. The Lib Dems and the Conservatives urged Labour to scrap the changes, which are due to come into force from April 2026. 11:08 , Alexander Butler 11:00 , Alexander Butler 10:52 , Alexander Butler Dozens of tractors and harvesters have started driving onto Parliament Street, Alex Croft reports. The huge vehicles were parked off the main thoroughfare this morning. It is not clear if they have permission to be there or not. The Met Police banned all 'mechanically propelled vehicles' from London following protests last month that saw hundreds of tractors disrupt traffic across the city. However, a small number of farming vehicles have been allowed into London with prior permission from the police. 10:39 A third Labour MP has broke ranks with the party to oppose the government's plans for inheritance tax. Henry Tufnell, MP for South and Mid-Pembrokeshire, warned it was not only wealthy landowners who would be affected by the decision to levy inheritance tax on farms worth more than £1m. "It's affecting the fabric of the society within those rural communities and that's why we were elected," Mr Tufnell told Sky News. 09:57 , Alexander Butler Protesting farmers have turned up to London in gigantic combine harvesters. A huge Grimme sugar beat harvester towered over two smaller vehicles outside Whitehall this morning. A self-propelled Claas Jaguar 970 forage harvester was parked next to it, alongside a Claas combine harvester. The Met Police has banned all 'mechanically propelled vehicles' from London following protests last month that saw hundreds of tractors descend on the city. Some vehicles have been allowed into London with prior permission from the police. 09:40 , Alexander Butler Farmer Olly Harrison, one of the organisers, said: 'We don't need any tractors, this is on foot. 'We are going to have some kit to show to the MPs to explain the levels of investment. 'We've sorted all that out, you just get yourself there on foot,' he told those taking part. 'Let's explain the levels of investment needed in agriculture just to produce something simple like a pancake.' 09:27 , Alexander Butler A Government spokesperson said: 'Our commitment to farmers remains steadfast. 'This Government are investing £5 billion into farming, the largest budget for sustainable food production in our country's history. 'We are going further with reforms to boost profits for farmers by backing British produce and reforming planning rules on farms to support food production. 'Our reform to agricultural and business property reliefs will mean three quarters of estates will continue to pay no inheritance tax at all, while the remaining quarter will pay half the inheritance tax that most people pay, and payments can be spread over 10 years, interest-free. 'This is a fair and balanced approach which helps fix the public services we all rely on.' 09:20 , Alexander Butler Labour is pressing ahead with a 20 per cent inheritance tax rate on agricultural land and businesses worth more than £1 million. The move essentially scraps an exemption that meant no tax was paid to pass down family farms. The plans are due to come into force from April 2026. 08:39 , Alexander Butler Deputy Assistant Commissioner Ben Russell, who is commanding the policing operation, said: 'Two previous protests have taken place in the same area, with the same organisers, in recent months. 'The second protest saw a significant number of people attend with tractors and other large farming vehicles. Whitehall was blocked for much of the day and there were lengthy significant delays on surrounding roads. 'It is our responsibility to ensure that protests don't cause serious disruption to the life of the community and we've used our powers under the Public Order Act to ensure that does not happen on Tuesday. 'We have been in regular contact with the organisers to explain our decision making and I'm grateful for the positive and collaborative approach they have taken.' 08:37 , Alexander Butler Why are Britain's farmers protesting? 07:59 , Tara Cobham Farmer Olly Harrison, one of the organisers, said: 'We don't need any tractors, this is on foot. 'We are going to have some kit to show to the MPs to explain the levels of investment. 'We've sorted all that out, you just get yourself there on foot,' he told those taking part. 'Let's explain the levels of investment needed in agriculture just to produce something simple like a pancake.' 07:51 , Tara Cobham Farmers could be arrested if they drive their tractors at a march in central London, police have said. Conditions have been imposed under the Public Order Act preventing demonstrators from bringing tractors, other than a limited number already agreed by the organisers to demonstrate the costs of such specialist equipment, the Metropolitan Police said. Deputy assistant commissioner Ben Russell, who is leading the policing operation, said last month's protest saw a 'significant number of people attend with tractors and other large farming vehicles'. He said there were lengthy road delays, adding: 'It is our responsibility to ensure that protests don't cause serious disruption to the life of the community.' Scotland Yard warned that it is a criminal offence to breach the conditions or to incite others to do so, and that anyone doing so may face arrest. 07:45 Farmers say that it will force land sales, stall investment, and hurt families lacking succession plans. But the government has stood firm, calling the move a 'fair and balanced approach'. 07:41 , Tara Cobham The government has stood firm in the face of strong opposition to the move, insisting its approach is 'fair and balanced'. A government spokesperson said: 'Our commitment to farmers remains steadfast. 'This Government are investing £5 billion into farming, the largest budget for sustainable food production in our country's history. 'We are going further with reforms to boost profits for farmers by backing British produce and reforming planning rules on farms to support food production. 'Our reform to agricultural and business property reliefs will mean three quarters of estates will continue to pay no inheritance tax at all, while the remaining quarter will pay half the inheritance tax that most people pay, and payments can be spread over 10 years, interest-free. 'This is a fair and balanced approach which helps fix the public services we all rely on.' 07:39 , Tara Cobham The Lib Dems and the Conservatives urged Labour to scrap the changes. Shadow environment secretary Victoria Atkins called the move 'vindictive'. 'Once again, rural communities will gather in Westminster to show their united opposition to Labour's vindictive family farms tax. 'Our rural communities have warned repeatedly that Labour's tax hike is stopping investment, inflicting an enormous emotional toll on farming families and will break family farms,' she said. She also argued that introducing this tax puts domestic food production and security at risk. Tim Farron, the Lib Dem environment spokesman, said: 'British farmers are the best in the world. We need them now more than ever to restore nature, provide food security, tackle climate change and support the rural economy. 'The Government must reverse this disastrous family farm tax and instead provide farmers with the support and funding they need to do what is best for the country and for future generations.' 07:37 , Tara Cobham Labour is pressing ahead with a 20 per cent inheritance tax rate on agricultural land and businesses worth more than £1 million. The move essentially scraps an exemption that meant no tax was paid to pass down family farms. The plans are due to come into force from April 2026. 07:34 , Tara Cobham Farmers will return to central London to protest inheritance tax changes with a 'Pancake Day rally' on Tuesday. Attendees will march from Whitehall at around midday towards Parliament, with the demonstration due to end at 3pm. The protest will be largely on foot as police are allowing only a limited number of tractors after last month's demonstration caused traffic delays. Farmers who bring tractors in breach of the conditions could face arrest. Farmer Olly Harrison, one of the organisers, has said the protesters will aim to explain to MPs 'the levels of investment needed in agriculture just to produce something simple like a pancake'.
Yahoo
04-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Why are Britain's farmers protesting over Labour's inheritance tax changes?
Thousands of farmers are set to head to London for the latest in a series of protests as the 'Pancake Day Rally' against Labour changes to inheritance tax gets underway. Farmers and their allies will begin to gather from midday on Tuesday for speeches outside Parliament. Industry leaders say the plan put forward by chancellor Rachel Reeves during her first Budget last October, is 'marching the UK into a food crisis'. Police have warned attendees that they face arrest if they bring unauthorised tractors to Whitehall, as has been seen at previous events. This marks the first time such a warning has been put in place, with several tractors hitting the streets on central London in recent months. A Metropolitan Police spokesperson said: 'It is a criminal offence to breach the conditions or to incite others to do so – anyone doing so may face arrest.' However, a limited number of agreed tractors have been authorised. Organiser and farmer Olly Harrison has said the protesters will aim to explain to MPs 'the levels of investment needed in agriculture just to produce something simple like a pancake'. Here's everything you need to know about the issue: Previously, farming businesses qualified for 100 per cent relief on inheritance tax on agricultural property and business property. But now the tax is being imposed on farms worth more than £1 million, with an effective tax rate of 20 per cent on assets above the threshold, rather than the normal 40 per cent rate for inheritance tax. The Government says that the actual threshold before paying inheritance tax could be as much as £3 million, once exemptions for each partner in a couple and for the farm property are taken into account. The government has said 'difficult decisions' had to be made to fill a £22 billion fiscal hole it inherited from the Conservatives, and it is targeting the agricultural inheritance tax relief to make it fairer. It said figures showed that 7 per cent of the wealthiest estates account for 40 per cent of the total value of agricultural property relief, costing the Treasury £219 million. According to the Treasury, some 27 per cent of estates claiming agricultural property relief (APR) were above the £1 million threshold in 2021/2022, suggesting that nearly three-quarters of farms would not fall within the scope of the charges. The Treasury says around 500 estates a year are expected to pay inheritance tax under the changes. However, the National Farmers' Union (NFU) says farm businesses have also qualified separately for business property relief, which can cover things such as harvested grain and livestock, machinery and diversified businesses such as camping on a farmer's field. Now the two are combined, with a single £1 million allowance before inheritance tax is levied, which could mean more farms are in scope. The NFU points to figures from the Environment Department (Defra) showing that 66 per cent of farm businesses in England have a net value of more than £1 million. But the government has countered that analysis, saying that looking at asset value alone does not necessarily mean the farm will be affected, as it depends on individual circumstances. According to the NFU, while farms may have a high nominal asset value – the value of their land and business assets – the returns from farming are often very low, so farming families may not have the reserves to pay for inheritance tax liabilities without selling off assets. The NFU's president Tom Bradshaw said the change had left elderly farmers in the 'cruellest predicament', as they may not live for another seven years to take advantage of exemptions for gifting assets, or to hand over assets in a way that qualifies for the gifting exemption. He has also warned the changes could undermine investment as farmers will be wary of increasing the balance sheet as they will be liable to pay inheritance tax on it. There are also concerns that it could affect tenant farmers if landowners no longer benefit from having a tax exemption for farmed land. Mr Bradshaw said there was a feeling among farmers that the Government did not understand food production.
