‘Hammer blow for Rachel Reeves!’ Countryside Alliance praises TUC’s bold stance on ‘tractor tax’
The Countryside Alliance has welcomed the TUC’s intervention in the “tractor tax” debate as a “hammer blow” for the Government.
Speaking to GB News, Mo Metcalf-Fisher, director of external affairs at the Countryside Alliance, called it “a real hammer blow for Rachel Reeves, Keir Starmer and the Labour Government.”
His comments come after TUC general secretary Paul Nowak has expressed serious concerns about the impact of the proposed inheritance tax changes on small farmers.
Speaking to GB News, Mo Metcalf-Fisher, the director of external affairs at the Countryside Alliance said: “It’s great to see this development and it’s a real hammer blow for Rachel Reeves, Keir Starmer and the Labour government.
“Another voice and not just any voice, the voice of the TUC, whilst not directly affiliated to Labour is still a huge organisation over representing over a million workers now coming in and weighing in behind this.
“This has become increasingly embarrassing for the government and it’s about time that they listened to what we have to say and find a way out of this disaster.
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He added: “They don’t even seem to want to be listening to anybody at all. They’ve just got the kind of fingers in their ears and pretending everything’s fine.
“I really, sadly, believe that they thought this would all go away. But actually going into 2025, the headlines are going to get even worse.
“There’ll be more and more stories, heart breaking stories from families that are going to have to sell up because the the burden, the tax burden is going to be too high.”
Nowak told The Independent: “I’m worried about the impact of that on small farmers.”
“I know that for some small employers, national insurance contributions will also be a worry next year.”
“Anyone would be worried,” he continued, addressing the fears of family farmers who have been protesting in recent months.
Nowak emphasised that impacting small family farms “was never the intention” of the policy.
“The onus will be on the government to demonstrate that this doesn’t have the impact that some fear it will have,” he stated.
While supporting the overall Budget, Nowak indicated ministers would need to “test that out and make sure” the tax changes won’t harm small farms.
In his comments to The Independent, Metcalf-Fisher said Nowak’s concerns are “echoed across the farming sector.”
“As each week passes, more and more experts are issuing warnings about this hated policy,” he said.
He urged Rachel Reeves and her Treasury team to “put ego aside, accept they have got this one wrong, and work with the rural sector to find a way forward.”