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Glasgow Times
an hour ago
- Glasgow Times
Farming burden has ‘crossed the threshold', Badenoch warns
Speaking to farmers in her North West Essex constituency, the Conservative Party leader criticised 'constant Government saying, 'You can't do this, you can't do that, you can't move forwards''. Mrs Badenoch tried her hand at harvesting wheat during her visit to a farm in Little Walden, driving a Claas Lexion combine harvester with farmer Sam Goddard. Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch and farmer Sam Goddard (Stefan Rousseau/PA) She told Mr Goddard: 'I am very keen to find out more and more about what this year has been like and about how we're actually going to do the harvest.' Looking at the machine, the MP for North West Essex added: 'It's a lot more complicated than I assumed.' Replacing his machine like-for-like would cost around £400,000, but more up-to-date models would probably be more expensive, Mr Goddard said. Taking questions from farmers about changes to the agricultural property relief from inheritance tax, Mrs Badenoch said that the Government was 'not going to get tax from farms that don't exist'. From April 2026, farmers who previously did not have to pay inheritance tax on their agricultural property will only be able to pass on up to £1 million without facing a bill. Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch sits in the cab of a combine harvester during her visit to Hall Farm in Little Walden, Essex (Stefan Rousseau/PA) Beyond this threshold, they face a new effective rate of 20%. Fiscal watchdog the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) has projected this change, along with a similar change to business property relief, will raise around £0.5 billion for the Treasury by 2027/28. 'If you force people to give up or sell off, then you don't get anything at all,' Mrs Badenoch warned. 'And the bottom line is, this whole argument is because some people do not understand the difference between assets and income, and that just because you have an asset that's worth a lot, it doesn't mean that there's lots of money coming in to tax.' The Leader of the Opposition added that businesses 'need a different tax regime', and continued: 'A lot of farming just feels like constant interference. 'Everything is interfered from the minute you wake up.' Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch speaks to farmers during her visit to Hall Farm in Little Walden, Essex (Stefan Rousseau/PA) Examples of interference included 'chemicals and insecticide, people you're hiring, how much you've got to pay them', plus changes to 'employers' NI (national insurance), then somebody wants to put pylons on, there's compulsory purchase, it's impacting the cost of the land, if you want to add a new farm building, there's planning applications', she said. 'It's just endless constant Government saying, 'You can't do this, you can't do that, you can't move forwards'. 'And the burden in my view has now crossed the threshold.'
Leader Live
an hour ago
- Leader Live
Farming burden has ‘crossed the threshold', Badenoch warns
Speaking to farmers in her North West Essex constituency, the Conservative Party leader criticised 'constant Government saying, 'You can't do this, you can't do that, you can't move forwards''. Mrs Badenoch tried her hand at harvesting wheat during her visit to a farm in Little Walden, driving a Claas Lexion combine harvester with farmer Sam Goddard. She told Mr Goddard: 'I am very keen to find out more and more about what this year has been like and about how we're actually going to do the harvest.' Looking at the machine, the MP for North West Essex added: 'It's a lot more complicated than I assumed.' Replacing his machine like-for-like would cost around £400,000, but more up-to-date models would probably be more expensive, Mr Goddard said. Taking questions from farmers about changes to the agricultural property relief from inheritance tax, Mrs Badenoch said that the Government was 'not going to get tax from farms that don't exist'. From April 2026, farmers who previously did not have to pay inheritance tax on their agricultural property will only be able to pass on up to £1 million without facing a bill. Beyond this threshold, they face a new effective rate of 20%. Fiscal watchdog the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) has projected this change, along with a similar change to business property relief, will raise around £0.5 billion for the Treasury by 2027/28. 'If you force people to give up or sell off, then you don't get anything at all,' Mrs Badenoch warned. 'And the bottom line is, this whole argument is because some people do not understand the difference between assets and income, and that just because you have an asset that's worth a lot, it doesn't mean that there's lots of money coming in to tax.' The Leader of the Opposition added that businesses 'need a different tax regime', and continued: 'A lot of farming just feels like constant interference. 'Everything is interfered from the minute you wake up.' Examples of interference included 'chemicals and insecticide, people you're hiring, how much you've got to pay them', plus changes to 'employers' NI (national insurance), then somebody wants to put pylons on, there's compulsory purchase, it's impacting the cost of the land, if you want to add a new farm building, there's planning applications', she said. 'It's just endless constant Government saying, 'You can't do this, you can't do that, you can't move forwards'. 'And the burden in my view has now crossed the threshold.'
Spectator
an hour ago
- Spectator
Ed Davey should stick to his silly stunts – not lecture us on Gaza
Ed Davey's got this Middle East business figured out. The Liberal Democrat leader has tweeted — because, honestly, what else is there to do as Lib Dem leader other than tweet? — his latest insight into the Gaza war: 'Now the Hamas terrorists behind the October 7 atrocities are trying to erode support for recognition of a Palestinian state by falsely claiming it would be a victory for them. Hamas do not represent the Palestinian people and have no future in Gaza with a two-state solution.' That's nice, Ed. Now, I'm not suggesting you're a disingenuous twit and should stick to making a prat of yourself on a surfboard instead of making a prat of yourself on foreign policy, but it couldn't hurt to get a second opinion. Just on the off-chance that you're desperately trying to deflect from your policy of handing Hamas a massive victory by calling for the recognition of a Palestinian state and its unfortunate – and surprising – side effect of handing Hamas a massive victory. In fact, I know who we can ask about what the Palestinians really think. Let's ask…the Palestinians. The Palestinian Centre for Policy and Survey Research is widely respected for its analysis of Palestinian public opinion, not least for its researchers' unrivalled data-gathering in the middle of a war zone. The centre's most recent poll of Palestinian adults was conducted in May and asked a series of questions about the current war and the political mood in the West Bank and Gaza. If legislative elections were held tomorrow, how would they vote? Hamas 43 per cent Fatah 28 per cent Other parties 8 per cent Don't know 19 per cent Did Hamas commit atrocities against Israeli civilians, including women and children, on October 7? Yes 9 per cent No 87 per cent Do they support the disarmament of Hamas in order to stop the war in Gaza? Support 18 per cent Oppose 77 per cent Don't know 5 per cent Satisfaction level for each Palestinian faction or institution: Hamas 57 per cent Fatah 24 per cent Palestinian Authority 23 per cent Mahmoud Abbas 15 per cent Now, it's true that support for Hamas is falling, and on current polling it would not win a hypothetical presidential election. (The incumbent, Mahmoud Abbas, is currently in the 20th year of his four-year term. In Palestine, all elections are hypothetical.) But to suggest that Hamas 'do not represent the Palestinian people' is, if Davey is as fencepost-dumb as I suspect he is, a critical misunderstanding or, if there is a flicker of intelligent life that I have missed, an outright lie. Even if it is a lie, don't be too harsh on the man. You'd lie, too, if you were the kind of chump who thought recognising a Palestinian state in the middle of a war started by Hamas wouldn't send the message that Hamas's methods get results. You'd pathetically attempt to spin it as a tactic by the terrorists who committed (or, if you ask the Palestinians, did not commit) the October 7 atrocities. You'd insist that these terrorists did not represent the Palestinian people, the same Palestinian people who would prefer the war continue than that the terrorists put down their guns. It really is a dilemma. The face of students-and-shires British progressivism says one thing about Hamas, but the people in the West Bank and Gaza say another. Who are you going to believe? Ed Davey, or those lying Palestinians?
