No 10 defends tax raids on household farms

Downing Street has defended Rachel Reeves’s Budget tax raids on the care sector and family farms.

Family farms are to be hit with inheritance tax after the Chancellor announced plans earlier this week to scale back agricultural relief on land valued at more than £1m.

GP surgeries and care homes, meanwhile, are not currently exempt from Ms Reeves’s National Insurance raid despite fears it could have a “monumental” impact on the sector.

The Prime Minister’s official deputy spokeswoman said: “Firstly our commitment to supporting farmers and the role that they play to feed our nation remains steadfast. That’s why we’ve committed £5bn to support them in the agricultural budget in the next two years.

“Seventy-three per cent of farms will be unaffected by this and the regime still provides a significant degree of inheritance tax relief for farmers. We understand the importance of protecting the family farm.”

Pressed on whether ministers were confident the changes will not hurt food security, the spokeswoman said: “Yes. We are committed to supporting farmers.”

Asked about the care sector being affected by the tax raid, she added: “On this and more broadly, the Government has taken tough decisions driven by the need to restore economic stability and protect public services and that’s the approach that we have taken and we’ve been very clear throughout that that involves tough decisions and trade-offs.”

Source: telegraph.co.uk