Kendall Glenn
Libby Clarke is a farmer from Magheralin in County Down who also sells agricultural land
“Santa has come early for farmers” in Northern Ireland after UK government proposals to tax inherited farmland have been watered down, a County Down farmer has said.
Libby Clarke also sells agricultural land and said farmers should “continue to lobby” for more change when it comes to taxing family farms.
On Monday, the government announced plans to increase the tax threshold from £1m to £2.5m.
Ms Clarke said the farming sector had been seen by the government “as an easy target to try and get revenue in from”, which she branded as “totally unfair”.
President of the Ulster Farmers Union, William Irvine, said the news “eases pressure on family farms” but it was “not where we want to see the final position to be”.
The move was a “step in the right direction,” he said.
Agriculture Minister Andrew Muir also welcomed the announcement saying it was “significant and important” but “long overdue”.
He said there had been “a lot of anxiety and worry among the farming community in Northern Ireland” since the inheritance tax proposal.
Speaking to BBC Radio Ulster’s Good Morning Ulster programme on Tuesday, Ms Clarke said the “stress that it has brought throughout farmers right across the country for over a year has been immense”.
She said the tax threshold increase would still continue to affect farmers in Northern Ireland.
“Land can sell up to £35,000 an acre so you’re not into a whole lot of acres before you’re into that threshold [of £2.5m] because you also have to take into account your farm buildings, livestock, machinery,” she said.
“£2.5m, although it sounds like a big headline figure is actually – in terms of a farm of 100 to 150 acres – it’s not going to cut it.
“Targeting what is effectively a farm business and leaving it vulnerable is wrong. The fundamental practice of it is totally outrageous and they should completely drop it.”
Roberta Armstrong
Roberta Armstrong, a retired agricultural bank manager and farm owner from Kilrea, said the announcement was a huge weight off her family’s shoulders
Roberta Armstrong, a retired agricultural bank manager and farm owner from Kilrea in County Londonderry, admitted the government U-turn was very unexpected but certainly incredibly welcome.
Ms Armstrong said her husband passed away aged 58 from cancer in 2021, having spent his entire working life growing a dairy farm that he could leave to his loved ones.
Following her husband’s passing, Ms Armstrong said she was incredibly worried about how the proposed changes to inheritance tax would impact their family.
Ms Armstrong described the government’s new plans a huge relief for her family and for many other farming families across Northern Ireland.
“We were not expecting this news this side of Christmas. It was certainly something we were hoping for, but it came completely out of the blue,” she told BBC Radio Foyle’s North West Today programme on Wednesday.
“Now, as a family, this news takes us out of that inheritance tax liability, and we do fall within the £5m allowance, which is a huge weight off our shoulders.
“There are many ongoing concerns and worries within farming, and this is one that we didn’t need. Thankfully, it has now been removed for us.”
Analysis: Relief but uncertainty remains
Louise CullenAgriculture and environment correspondent, BBC News NI
The removal of 100% inheritance tax relief for farmers placed many in Northern Ireland in an invidious position.
Land values here are significantly higher than elsewhere in the UK, easily putting many over the threshold.
And farms here are also predominantly owner-occupied – small family farms where the farmer often has a full-time job that essentially funds the farm work.
Tenant farming on large estates is just not a cultural thing here.
I have had farmers breaking down when they’re talking to me about inheritance tax, telling of parents refusing cancer treatment, fears of saddling children with enormous debt, or the awful hope that an elderly parent will die before April to avoid a multi-million pound tax bill that was never factored into succession planning down the years.
This new change to the threshold is a welcome relief for many, but uncertainty and fear will still remain for some.
PA Media
Carla Lockhart MP said farmers had “been tortured by the government”
‘Perhaps it was a visit from the ghost of Christmas future’
Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) MP Carla Lockhart said she was not surprised by the announcement as the government “have come under serious pressure and it’s absolutely clear there was a growing rebellion of labour MPs” but it was “welcome news”.
“It’s not exactly what we want and we will continue press for more but it is welcome news at Christmas for our farmers,” Lockhart told Good Morning Ulster.
“There are a number of farms still that are going to be hit and we’ve got to look at the impact in Northern Ireland and across the UK but this is a start.”
Sinn Féin MP Cathal Mallaghan said farms should be treated differently when it comes to inheritance tax
Sinn Féin MP Cathal Mallaghan also welcomed the news and said he did not know what happened in terms of the government’s change of policy.
“Perhaps it was a visit from the ghost of Christmas future that Rachel Reeves and the Treasury have seen how much damage that this is going to cause,” he told the programme.
Mallaghan said there was “a lot of fear” in the farming community with added pressure such as bluetongue and bird flu.
“This was just putting so much pressure on family farms that I feel that this is such a great relief to them – especially before Christmas.”
