A farmer broke down in tears as he spoke about the devastating impact Labour’s tax changes will have on family farms.
NFU chief Tom Bradshaw’s heart-wrenching testimony left MPs in a stunned silence, as he explained the terrible life-or-death choices elderly farmers are now having to make.
He told MPs about how middle-aged farmers are contacting him on behalf of their concerned parents, who don’t believe they have seven years left to live and can therefore not pass on the farm without it being clobbered with Labour’s inheritance tax hike.
He explained: “Somebody said earlier ‘they haven’t taken advice’ – that’s completely wrong. A lot of these people have spent a lot of money on the best tax planning advice, and until the Chancellor sat down [after her budget] the correct advice was to keep the farm until death.”
“Now they don’t have any way to plan through that and yet they’ve given everything to producing food in this country in that period post Second World War.
“They really deserve a lot more respect than they have been given by the changes that are proposed.”
He opened up about the most severe human impacts from the tax change, implying that some elderly farmers may now be considering ending their own lives before the changes come in in April 2026.
He quietly slammed: “No policy should ever be published that has that unintended side effect.”
Mr Bradshaw teared up as he insisted that the concerns from farmers are not just about money, but about the wider lifestyle and custodianship of the countryside they wish to pass onto their children.
He warned: “It’s not money, this is a lifetime of work, it’s the heritage…”
At this point he was unable to speak, overcome with emotion.
After a long pause to gather himself he continued: “and the custodianship of that farm.”
The camera cut to Labour MP Tonia Antoniazzi who looked on the verge of tears herself, who had asked about the mental health impact of Rachel Reeves’ tax changes.
The select committee appearance took place at the same time as farmers shut down Westminster with a mass of tractors.
The horns can be heard inside parliament, with farmers hoping they would be heard during PMQs.
So far Labour has insisted it will not be making any modifications to their tractor tax policy.
