North West Tonight
A farmer has described the government’s changes to inheritance tax rules as “absolutely ludicrous”, warning he may have to sell the family business as a result.
Ian Norbury, who runs a beef farm in Mobberley near Knutsford in Cheshire, was speaking at a protest held in Chester as part of a national “farming day of unity”.
Working farms are currently exempt from inheritance tax but, from April 2026, any inherited properties or land worth over £1m will be taxed at a rate of 20%.
The government previously said the plans would only affect a small proportion of farmers and that it would invest £5bn into farming over the next two years.
Tractors and farm animals were brought to Town Hall Square in Chester city centre as farmers called for a rethink.
National Farmers Union vice president Rachel Hallos said the government needed to “sit down and talk to us” to find a solution, claiming it had not taken “the full picture” into account when making calculations.
“You can’t just continue to shut the door on us,” she said.
Mr Norbury said the government had “just got it so wrong” and needed to recalculate the figures upon which it was basing its decision.
The change would affect him massively as his father owns the farm and is in his 80s, he said.
Richard Blackburn, a dairy farmer from Nantwich, said farmers already paid “a lot of tax” and this was “a kick in the teeth”.
The change would mean he would have to sell all or part of his farm, he said.
Farming was “quite hard as it is”, generally working on low returns, and this insecurity would deter his children from taking over the business, he added.
“This tax is just the wrong one completely,” he said.
“There must be other places where they can look.”
The government has been approached for a response to the protest.
