The cross-party Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee has called on the government to delay the implementation of its final agricultural property relief (APR) and business property relief (BPR) reforms.
In a heavily-critical report, the commitee proposed that the introduction of the reforms is delayed until October 2026, so the reforms come into effect in April 2027, saying a pause in the implementation of the reforms ‘would allow for better formulation of tax policy and provide the Government with an opportunity to convey a positive long-term vision for farming’. It would also protect vulnerable farmers who would have ‘more time to seek appropriate professional advice’, according to the committee that includes a number of Labour MPs.
The MPs noted the difficult economic and geopolitical circumstances and praised the Government’s commitments to backing British produce and supporting farmers, but expressed concern that ‘high-profile policies have been announced prior to the completion and publication of the strategies and reviews that Defra says will inform and guide its vision’.
They said the changes announced in the Autumn Budget 2024 were made without adequate consultation, impact assessment or affordability assessment. This means that the impact of the changes ‘on family farms, land values, tenant farmers, food security and farmers in the devolved administrations’ is ‘disputed and unclear’ with a risk of producing unintended consequences.
Most vulnerable
The also MPs also stress that the ‘reforms threaten to affect the most vulnerable’ and call for the Government to consider alternative reforms before justifying its final approach.
The Committee supports the government’s aim of reforming APR and BPR to close the loophole which allows wealthy investors to buy agricultural land to avoid inheritance tax, but notes that stakeholders. Experts have proposed several alternative ways to reform these taxes so as to achieve this objective without harming small family farms – the committee asks the government to consult on these proposals before publishing its Finance Bill in 2026.
It also calls on the Government to publish its evaluation of and rationale for following or not following alternative policy measures presented by stakeholders such as the Institute for Fiscal Studies and the NFU.
The report refers to a March 2025 survey of UK farmers that found that before the Autumn Budget 70% felt optimistic about the future of their rural businesses, but that number fell to 12% after the Budget. The survey also said that 84% of farmers sampled feel that their mental health has been affected by the Autumn Budget with farmers citing the Sustainable Farming Incentive closure and changes to inheritance tax reliefs as the common areas creating concern.
SFI closure
The Committee warns that the Government’s sudden closing of the SFI ‘affected trust in the Government’ and ‘left many farmers without the funding they expected and at risk of becoming unviable in the period before the next scheme is introduced’.
The Government has since announced it will allow SFI applications that were in progress within two months of March 11 to progress with restrictions.
EFRA calls for an alternative funding mechanism to be put in place no later than September 2025, to fill the gap in funding for those who missed out on the SFI24.
MPs say the Government should set out, in their response to this report, what the next iteration of SFI will look like and the date it will be open for applications.
Defra’s communications
The report is critical of Defra’s communications, saying there is ‘a pattern within Defra of poor communication and last-minute decision-making following rumours and Departmental leaks’.
MPs said the ‘sudden closure’; of the Capital Grants scheme in November 2024, which was subsequently reopened, and the ending of SFI 2024 ‘with no specific warning’, have ‘been perceived by the sector as a breach of trust’.
The Committee stressed that ‘lessons must be learned from this failure of communication’ and that ‘a restoration of trust is urgently required’.
EFRA chair Alistair Carmichael MP, said: “The Committee has taken its work extremely seriously in developing this report and in agreeing our findings. There is an opportunity here to rebuild trust and confidence in the farming sector and I hope that the Government will take our recommendations seriously.
“The way in which the Government has behaved over recent months has clearly negatively affected the confidence and wellbeing of farmers. Changes to APR and BPR in the Autumn Budget, the sudden closure of the Capital Grants scheme in November 2024, and the abrupt ending of SFI applications in March have all led farmers to feel that they cannot rely on the Government to live up to its commitments.
“The Government, however, seems to be dismissing farmers’ concerns and ignoring the strength of feeling evidenced in the months of protests that saw tractors converge on Westminster and up and down the country.
“We have seen that Defra’s communications with farmers have been poor, with confusing and sometimes contradictory messaging. There has been a lack of adequate consultation. Policies affecting farmers have been announced without due consideration or explanation of their impact or their rationale.
“Farmers urgently need clarity, certainty and advance notice of changes – they cannot be expected to rethink their businesses on a whim. It is essential that Defra focuses on rebuilding trust through good-faith communications with the sector.”
Defra response response
A government spokesperson said: “Our commitment to supporting our farmers and protecting Britian’s food security is steadfast – which is why we are investing £5 billion into farming, the largest budget for sustainable food production in our country’s history to put healthy, nutritious food on our tables.
“Our reforms to Agricultural and Business Property Relief are vital to fix the public services we all rely on. Three quarters of estates will continue to pay no inheritance tax at all, while the remaining quarter will pay half the inheritance tax that most people pay, and payments can be spread over 10 years, interest-free.”
Industry response
NFU president Tom Bradshaw said: “We’re grateful to the chairman and his committee for consistently scrutinising the cruel inheritance tax proposals announced in the Budget. We are glad to see that it agrees this policy is unfit to become legislation.
“We understand why the committee has asked for a delay, but that doesn’t take the terrible pressure off older farmers. The NFU maintains that this legislation is fundamentally unfit, destructive, badly constructed and must be changed.”
Country Land and Business Association (CLA) President Victoria Vyvyan said: “The government has dug itself into a deep hole by targeting family farms and businesses, and must now pause, listen and consult.
“The ‘clawback’ alternative that the CLA and other stakeholders propose could limit the damage to businesses. It would allow rural and other family businesses to continue to make medium and long-term investment decisions, unlocking the stalled growth in business investment in the rural economy and keeping land in production.
“This plan would also target those who have bought land to shelter wealth for short-term gain, and will still deliver revenue that the Treasury needs.”