Sarah Gibson MP meets with local farming community as Lib Dems demand ‘axe the family farm tax’
Sarah Gibson, MP for Chippenham, met with local farmers to discuss issues impacting rural communities, as thousands of farmers came to Westminster to raise their concerns over the blow the Budget has dealt to family farms.
Farmers from across Chippenham constituency raised their concerns about the impact of the family farm tax with Sarah Gibson MP. The tax will be a cause of concern for the 240 farms in Chippenham constituency and for farms all across Wiltshire.
Sarah Gibson MP discussed the impact these taxes would have on communities in the area on Tuesday (19th November) and is urging the government to axe the family farm tax.
One local farmer, Tom Collins, said “family farmers are the backbone of rural communities. We’re the ones clearing ditches, trimming hedges, getting people going if they’ve broken down on our country roads and supporting school fetes and summer festivals.
“My dad described farming as ‘a lot of sawing for not a lot of sawdust’. Many family farmers aren’t rich, but do this job because we care about farming, about our community and about feeding this country.
“This budget threatens to take away everything, including the sawdust”.
The challenges farming communities face can be seen across the board, with latest statistics revealing that in 2023/24, average Farm Business Income was lower for all farm types except for specialist pig farms.
The government has also decided to accelerate the phase out of direct payments to farmers under the basic payment scheme - all recipients will see the base amount of their payments cut by 76% next year. Ms Gibson has called for the government to urgently review this. By failing to do so, we are not giving farmers a fighting chance of sustainably and profitably feeding the nation and protecting our natural environment.
The Liberal Democrats are also calling for an additional £1 billion a year in support for farmers.
Liberal Democrat MP for Chippenham Constituency, Sarah Gibson MP said:
“Family farmers across my constituency have already been failed by a Conservative party that didn’t care about them - they can’t now be let down by a Labour government that does not understand them.
“But this family farm tax will not only impact our farmers, but also the wider rural business community, such as farm vets and farm shops. With fewer farms able to run, these other rural businesses are facing an unsettling future.
“British farmers are already battling with sky-high energy bills and botched overseas trade deals; and this hike will only make things much worse. I am urging the government to change course.
“For all their talk of growth, this Labour budget is failing to sow the seeds for a healthy rural economy. Instead, they’re putting family businesses and our food security at risk.”