The British farming sector is facing a storm of uncertainty and anxiety as sweeping changes to inheritance tax loom, threatening the viability of countless family-run farms across the country. On December 18, 2025, a long-awaited government-commissioned review led by Baroness Minette Batters, former president of the National Farmers’ Union (NFU), painted a stark picture: farmers are "bewildered and frightened of what might lie ahead," with the proposed tax reforms cited as the single biggest issue jeopardizing the future of British agriculture, according to BBC News and Sky News.
Under the controversial reforms, set to take effect in April 2026, farms with inherited agricultural assets worth more than £1 million will face a 20% inheritance tax—a dramatic change from previous exemptions. The measure, announced in 2024, has sparked outrage and repeated protests from the farming community, with thousands rallying in London over the past year, as reported by Sky News. Many fear that this new financial burden will render smaller farms non-viable, potentially upending rural life and the tradition of passing farms down through generations.
Baroness Batters’ review, commissioned six months ago and delayed twice before its publication, did not formally include the inheritance tax issue within its scope. However, she emphasized that “nearly all the responses to this review have cited inheritance tax as the single biggest issue regarding farming viability that they face. The farming sector is bewildered and frightened of what might lie ahead.” Her report, which includes 57 recommendations, calls for a “new deal for profitable farming” that recognizes the true cost of producing food and delivering environmental stewardship.
The timing of the review’s publication has also raised eyebrows, with some suggesting it was held back until after the Chancellor’s budget in November 2025 to avoid political scrutiny. The report arrives at a tense moment for rural communities, many of whom feel betrayed by the Labour Party. Farmers allege that Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer misled them before the last election with promises of support, only to "pull the rug from under family farms," as Lancashire Labour MP Cat Smith put it during a heated exchange in the Commons Liaison Committee earlier this month. Smith warned that some farmers with terminal diagnoses were even considering expediting their own deaths so they could pass on their farms before the new tax rules take effect in April.
The political fallout has been swift and severe. Markus Campbell-Savours, MP for the rural Cumbrian seat of Penrith and Solway, was suspended from the Labour parliamentary party after voting against the government on the inheritance tax issue. Conservative MP Matt Vickers seized on the report’s findings, declaring, “The report Labour commissioned on farming profitability shows the cruel reality of Rachel Reeves’s family farm tax. Farmers say it’s the biggest issue they face – and they are frightened about what might lie ahead.”
Beyond the inheritance tax storm, the review highlights other formidable challenges facing British agriculture. Farmers have endured a sharp rise in input costs and increasingly extreme weather, including a severe drought in 2025. Baroness Batters noted that costs are projected to be 30% higher in 2026 compared to 2020, while the £2.4 billion farming budget for England has remained virtually unchanged since 2007. This squeeze is compounded by uncertainty over the closure of applications to the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI)—the main post-Brexit agricultural payments scheme—leaving many farmers questioning not just their profitability, but the very viability of their businesses.
“Farmers don’t want handouts from the state,” Baroness Batters insisted. “They want nothing more than to run thriving, profitable farming businesses, by earning a fair return for what they produce.” Her recommendations urge the government to restore the balance between food production and environmental goals, grow ‘Brand Britain’ through increased exports and supermarket sales, and ensure better monitoring of supply chain fairness.
The report’s release has prompted robust reactions from across the agricultural sector. Tom Bradshaw, NFU president, described the review as “thorough and complex,” saying it was “right to recognize reform is needed.” He stressed, “The ball is now in Defra’s court. Ministers have to drive these priority areas forward. But alongside this, there are other immediate actions that are needed to boost British farming, like providing much-needed clarity and certainty on the future of the Sustainable Farming Incentive and doing the right thing on the pernicious inheritance tax changes.”
Gavin Lane, president of the Country Land and Business Association, echoed these concerns, warning, “Profitability across the sector is perilously slim, with farmers battling high input costs, low commodity prices and volatile weather conditions. Many farm businesses are marginal or loss-making, yet will soon be hit with unaffordable inheritance tax bills, which in many cases will dwarf their annual profit.”
The government, for its part, has responded with a mix of reassurance and new initiatives. Environment Secretary Emma Reynolds emphasized the central role of British farmers in the nation’s food security and rural economy. “When farming thrives, the whole country benefits. British farmers are central to our food security, our rural economy and the stewardship of our countryside,” Reynolds stated. She announced the creation of a new Farming and Food Partnership Board, designed to bring together senior leaders from farming, food production, retail, finance, and government to “drive growth, productivity and long-term profitability across the sector.”
“This is about serious action to remove barriers, unlock investment and make the food system work better, so farm businesses can grow, invest and plan for the future with confidence,” Reynolds added. The government also plans to publish a comprehensive 25-year Farming Roadmap in 2026, outlining its full response to the review’s recommendations. Additional efforts include reforms to planning regulations to prioritize food production, accelerate the development of on-farm reservoirs and infrastructure, and support the expansion of exports and new markets.
The review does not shy away from the existential threats posed by climate change. Farming occupies 70% of UK land, and the sector is already feeling the effects of more frequent extreme weather events. Baroness Batters urged, “With ever more extreme weather, the horrific, ongoing war in Ukraine and 69.7 million people in the UK, now is the time to deliver food security as national security.”
As the April 2026 deadline for the inheritance tax reforms approaches, the future for British farmers remains fraught with uncertainty. The sector’s call for urgent action grows louder, demanding not only immediate relief from new tax burdens but also a long-term vision that secures the sustainability and prosperity of rural communities. Whether the government’s forthcoming roadmap and partnership initiatives will be enough to restore confidence—and profitability—to British agriculture is a question that remains unanswered, but the stakes could hardly be higher for the nation’s farmers and the land they steward.
