Calls to support Oxfordshire farmers after the budget
We’re being encouraged to support the produce farmed in Oxfordshire
A farmer from Oxfordshire is urging us to back British farming and the produce made in Oxfordshire after the ‘betrayal’ from the government in the budget.
Why are farmers wanting support?
In the Autumn Budget, Rachel Reeves outlined there will be a rise to employers’ national insurance from April next year which hits many small businesses.
Also, many farmers will now be charged with a 20% inheritance tax on agricultural assets worth more than 1-million pounds from April 2026.
This is something that the National Farmers Union say they feel “betrayed” by, something which Karl Franklin who is a Shepherd in Chipping Norton agrees with.
Mr Franklin also says “it’s a real worry we could see a decline in farms” across Oxfordshire after these announcements.
He added: “There’s not as many people wanting to go into the industry as there was before, people are having to go elsewhere because family farms can’t sustain the next generation coming in and all of these things could be a knock-on effect where we don’t see as many farms.
“And let’s not forget that the most important thing that we need three times a day is food.”
In a message to Kier Starmer, Mr Franklin said: “Come out and farm, come out and see what happens, and don’t just do a walk around in your clean wellies – actually get involved.
“When you sit down for lunch and dinner think about where that food has come from”.
How can we back farming in Oxfordshire?
Mr Franklin said: “We hold some of the highest welfare in the world, we’re leading in our innovation, we want to be net-zero as an industry and by supporting us you know where your food is coming from.
“You don’t know what happens over shores and how that food is produced, so I think we have control and a say of how our food is produced in the UK, but we don’t have a say overseas.”
He added: “Look for the union jack or the red tractor on your food because that’s the best and easiest way to support farmers.
“And if you’re able to spend a little bit more and buy one joint of meat a month from the butchers, I genuinely believe it tastes even better because it’s quicker from field to fork and not having to go through many distribution centres and is straight onto the dinner plate.”
What has a local MP said about this?
Calum Miller is the Liberal Democrat MP for Bicester and Woodstock, he said: “Farmers have said to me that land in our area is quite valuable and therefore when you price an estate, even a relatively small family farm, will go well-over the threshold of one million pounds.
“That means when it comes to the end of the current farmers life and there’s an inheritance bill due, there’s a real risk that farm will get broken up or that they will have to stop farming.
“We’ve got a real challenge in this country around food security, and we’ve seen what happened with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and what that did for world grain prices, so I think the government really needs to think deeply.”
What has Government said?
Earlier this week, in Kemi Badenock’s first PMQ’s she questioned the Prime Minister she called plans for inheritance tax as "cruel family farms tax" and vowed to reverse it.
Kier Starmer replied in Parliament to say, “the vast majority of farmers will be unaffected” and that the government are taking a “fair and balanced approach”.