Farming News - John Healey must end war on rural Britain - CLA President
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John Healey must end war on rural Britain - CLA President
Gavin Lane, President of the Country Land and Business Association, said:
"Rachel Reeves may have gone, but the uncertainty her policy created still hangs over Rural Britain. Families who have spent decades building farms and businesses are now being forced to discuss what land might have to be sold, what part of the enterprise might have to go, and whether there will be enough left to pass on. The partial reversal changed the arithmetic for some, but not the anxiety for many. Too many families may have to sell part of the business simply to keep the rest of it.
"Burnham and Healey now have the chance to put this right. But they cannot rebuild trust from the distance of a Treasury spreadsheet. They must begin by listening to the people already carrying the cost of this policy, through sleepless nights, difficult family conversations and investment decisions put on hold.
"The government's own figures show that the rural economy has £22.5 billion of growth waiting to be unlocked. But businesses will not invest or expand while their future remains uncertain. A full reversal of the inheritance tax changes, alongside proper backing for rural businesses, would give them the confidence to grow and pass on viable enterprises to the next generation.
"The countryside has never been short of ambition, only of governments prepared to match it."
"Rachel Reeves may have gone, but the uncertainty her policy created still hangs over Rural Britain. Families who have spent decades building farms and businesses are now being forced to discuss what land might have to be sold, what part of the enterprise might have to go, and whether there will be enough left to pass on. The partial reversal changed the arithmetic for some, but not the anxiety for many. Too many families may have to sell part of the business simply to keep the rest of it.
"Burnham and Healey now have the chance to put this right. But they cannot rebuild trust from the distance of a Treasury spreadsheet. They must begin by listening to the people already carrying the cost of this policy, through sleepless nights, difficult family conversations and investment decisions put on hold.
"The government's own figures show that the rural economy has £22.5 billion of growth waiting to be unlocked. But businesses will not invest or expand while their future remains uncertain. A full reversal of the inheritance tax changes, alongside proper backing for rural businesses, would give them the confidence to grow and pass on viable enterprises to the next generation.
"The countryside has never been short of ambition, only of governments prepared to match it."