Farmers in Suffolk say if the inheritance tax goes ahead, other businesses will suffer
It comes after a day of protest calling for the chancellor to make changes to the inheritance tax in tomorrows budget
Farmers in Suffolk say they are holding back on major investments because of proposed changes to inheritance tax rules.
Dozens of tractors travelled through parts of the county yesterday as part of a national protest, with many farmers warning that the reforms could threaten family-run businesses.
The economy could lose £15billion
Cath Crowther from the Country Land and Business Association (CLA) told those gathered that the proposals were already having an impact.
She said: "We're already seeing the massive impact on the supply chain. Machinery dealers struggling, people holding back on investment plans, increased unemployment."
Ms Crowther added that some businesses were putting growth plans on hold, asking: "Why would you increase the value of an asset if that increases your tax burden?"
According to Ms Crowther, CBI Economics modelling suggests the plans could "result in over 200,000 job losses, a loss to the economy of 14.9 billion, and a loss to tax revenue of 1.9 billion". She claimed the proposals "are not going to raise taxes like they say."
She also urged those in the sector to take action, saying: "Please, write to your MPs, especially if they're Labour. Turn up at their surgeries, tell the media, tell your local community your stories and the brilliant work that you are doing day in, day out."
Harry Suckling, a fifth-generation farmer from Holbrook, said his family had already delayed investment plans because of the uncertainty.
He told us: "My biggest concern is having to make the farm smaller when we sell something off to pay an inheritance tax bill. If we're working with less land, that's the tools we need to do our job."
Mr Suckling said profit on the farm was reinvested rather than taken as income, adding: "We're not putting money in the bank every year for us to spend on fancy vehicles, that is a common misconception."
He said his family had postponed building a new shed for sorting potatoes, saying the decision would have knock-on effects for other local firms.
"Down the line it will impact the person who would have built that shed, the person who will provide the equipment to go inside it," he said.
The CLA argues that family farms support rural communities, with Ms Crowther saying: "You invest locally, you create jobs, you pay taxes year after year. You don't siphon off profits to offshore, low-tax countries."
A Government spokesperson said it is "backing farmers with the largest nature-friendly budget in history with over £2.7 billion a year to grow their businesses, put more British food on our plates, and restore nature."
They added that reforms to Agricultural and Business Property Relief aim to "safeguard public services while keeping inheritance tax fair – with three quarters of estates paying nothing, and the rest paying half the usual rate, spread over 10 years interest-free."