Royal Welsh Show: ‘After countless U-turns, Labour must now also reverse its tax raid on Welsh farms’ – Plaid Cymru
Ann Davies MP and Llyr Gruffydd MS say UK Government should introduce a wealth tax instead of ‘targeting those who sustain our rural communities’
On the first day of the Royal Welsh Show, Plaid Cymru’s Westminster Agriculture Spokesperson Ann Davies MP has today called on the UK Government to reverse its planned changes to Agricultural Property Relief, warning that the policy will do “lasting harm” to Welsh family farms.
Speaking from Llanelwedd, Ms Davies said that after repeated policy reversals, it is time for Labour to “add this damaging farm tax to the list.”
Plaid Cymru’s Agriculture spokesperson in the Senedd, Llyr Gruffydd MS, said that most Welsh farmers are “cash poor” and that “many live a hand-to-mouth existence”.
The UK Government plans to introduce a cap on Agricultural and Business Property Relief from April 2026, meaning family farms valued above that threshold could face inheritance tax for the first time in 40 years. Despite claims that only 500 farms per year will be affected, Welsh farming unions warn that the vast majority of productive family farms in Wales could fall into scope due to rising land, machinery and asset values.
From the financial implications of restrictions and testing requirements to limit the spread of the Bluetongue virus, to the effects of prolonged dry and warm weather on crops and pasture, the new inheritance tax rules will be introduced amidst mounting financial pressures on farmers.
Plaid Cymru is calling for:
- A Wales-specific impact assessment that includes tenant and generational family farms
- Protection for active food-producing family farms from inheritance tax
- The introduction of a tax on extreme wealth – targeting assets worth over £10 million
Ann Davies MP said:
“After countless U-turns, Labour must now add its damaging farm tax to the list. Changes to Agricultural Property Relief represent a deeply unfair policy that targets the people who feed us, care for our land, and sustain our rural communities. It will do lasting harm to Welsh family farms.
“It is a policy based on the assumption that farmers are rich – that is fundamentally wrong in Wales, where our upland farmers are guardians of the land and make very little profit. The UK Government admits it has done no Wales-specific assessment. That’s unacceptable, and it must change immediately.
“Plaid Cymru believes that those with the broadest shoulders should pay their fair share. But the UK Government’s policy is too broad brush and targets the wrong people. Instead, the introduction of a tax on extreme wealth – a 2% tax on assets worth over £10 million – could raise over £20 billion a year. That is the fair and progressive way to fund public services and address inequality.
“The Royal Welsh Show is a chance to celebrate everything our farmers contribute. But because of this policy, they’re anxious about their ability to continue producing food into the future. With Bluetongue requirements and intense drought intensifying already significant financial pressures on farmers, Labour must reverse course – and they must do it now.”
Llyr Gruffydd added:
“Most of our family farms are cash poor and many live a hand-to-mouth existence. They don’t have the capital to shoulder this huge tax burden.
“Whilst it’s right to target those who buy land for tax avoidance purposes, our working family farms must not be caught in the crossfire. We have urged the Government to look at alternative approaches such as a clawback system that’s used successfully in other countries. This would only tax land if it’s subsequently sold within a specific number of years after inheritance.
“Sadly, the Chancellor’s policy will force already struggling businesses to sell off their land, making them less sustainable in the future. Plaid Cymru will fight the family farm tax all the way.”