Arable farmer Olly Harrison, who farms near Liverpool, was surprised to receive a WhatsApp message from Andy Burnham during the Makerfield byelection campaign. The personal contact was not just a politician on the campaign trail, Harrison said, but a sign of a changed approach to farmers. “He’s trying to meet farmers, he wants to meet up,” he said.
Under the Starmer administration, farmers faced new taxes, including an inheritance tax they strongly opposed. Harrison said dialogue between the government and agricultural workers had been nonexistent. Now Burnham appears to be building a better relationship, telling farmers on a summer visit that the government had a “long way to go to build back trust” and that the UK needed to “guarantee our own food production”.
Protest movement and government response
Harrison was among activist farmers angry at the 2024 budget. Protesters, including Jeremy Clarkson, drove tractors into Westminster after the chancellor’s announcement to demonstrate outside No 10 and the Treasury. The protests drew tens of thousands of people, arguing the new taxes would force farm closures as tax bills would outstrip revenue.
Since then, the group has followed former environment secretary Steve Reed at farming events, sounding tractor horns to drown out his speeches. Burnham’s team appears to be working to repair the relationship, and no farmer protest is planned at this year’s budget. A bridge may have been built, but it is not guaranteed to last.
Rural seats and farming budget concerns
Last year, a record 6,300 forestry, fishing and farming businesses closed, according to the Office for National Statistics. Some link this to the tax changes, though extreme weather and inflation have also played a part. Former Labour cabinet minister Lord Blunkett said at a Countryside Alliance event: “It’s very strange because we’ve never won so many rural seats since 1945 – around 135 Labour MPs are either rural or semi-rural – and their voices need to be heard much more clearly.”
The Mail on Sunday reported that a U-turn on inheritance tax is possible in the next budget. Government sources confirmed to the Guardian that it is a possibility, with ministers looking for a sweetener for farmers, such as a reduction in inheritance tax or more money for nature-friendly farming. One rural Labour MP said: “There are other things you could do for farmers that could be significantly better than changing inheritance tax again – new money for farming would be great and also meaningful progress on procuring public food from British farmers.”
The farming budget that replaced EU subsidies has faced criticism. Earlier this week, thousands of farmers were left empty-handed after the government’s £253m annual budget was spent in just six hours. “I have had some very upset emails from farmers,” the MP said. “The current system creates an exclusionary aspect, for those who can afford a land agent to get the email in. We need a new system.” The MP added that Starmer froze out rural MPs who questioned the inheritance tax decision: “Under Keir it wasn’t just farmers who felt shut out, it was rural MPs too. There has been a step-change since Andy came in with the relationship with backbenchers.”
New environment secretary reaches out
The new environment secretary, Angela Eagle, appointed by Burnham, has visited farms in recent weeks to build rapport. Martin Williams, an activist farmer on the River Wye in Herefordshire, said of Eagle’s visit: “It is surprising what you can achieve if people actually speak to each other.” Of Burnham, he added: “He is a savvy politician, he knows that you can’t throw away a whole contingency of voters. It was very difficult to get any meaningful dialogue with government but under the new regime it has changed quite markedly.”
Harrison also received a visit from Eagle: “When Angela turned up it was just like I knew her. The Defra team said ‘she wants to know what’s going on and hear your opinion’, she brought policy advisers.” He noted that Eagle lives nearby: “Angela only lives over the river from me, we didn’t disagree on anything.”
Despite these efforts, a recent poll from the Country Land and Business Association found that 0% of farmers would vote Labour again. Harrison said: “I’ve had a few comments saying don’t trust them, they haven’t got a vote left in the countryside, that is totally understandable. There are some farmers who are so angry still.”
Jeremy Clarkson was recently spotted filming an episode of Clarkson’s Farm with David Cameron, who called the inheritance tax on farm assets “stupid”. Clarkson declined to comment when the Guardian asked if, like Keir Starmer, Andy Burnham would be banned from his Cotswolds pub.
