Shropshire's furious farmers en route to Westminster to join protest over Inheritance Tax reforms

Shropshire Star

Father and son Neil and Adam Baylis from Haughton House Farm say the changes will be devastating to family run farms like theirs.

Transcript

00:00Well, this government's going to destroy all the family farms, say 100 acres to 800 acres.

00:09And everybody will have to sell their land to pay for it.

00:14And when they sell their land, they won't be paying 20%, they'll be paying 60%.

00:21And it'll all be going for building land.

00:25Even us, we own around Horton Hall.

00:28It'll all be going for building land.

00:31We didn't think they'd do a stupid thing like this.

00:35It's so low.

00:38They're going to destroy a lot of good farmers.

00:42Somebody 500, 600 acres is going to be destroyed.

00:46Even us, just over 300 acre farms worth 4 million.

00:53You've got no chance.

00:55I don't get a wage, he doesn't get a wage, my wife doesn't get a wage.

01:00You just roll over.

01:03You know, you just survive.

01:06Accountants told us yesterday you've lost 24,000 this year.

01:11You see?

01:13It's rough for everybody in the country, isn't it?

01:18And hitting people this hard in any business is not good.

01:23Especially when they want businesses to carry on.

01:27I can't understand them, I didn't expect them to be this vicious.

01:32With a million pounds, nothing in farming.

01:36I mean, a house with 30 acres is a million pounds.

01:43It's just going to do disaster.

01:46You know, a lot of people are losing heart now.

01:50People like Adam, you have to talk to them.

01:53All we can hope is they do five years and they're out.

01:57And somebody else does something.

01:59That's all we can hope of.

02:01For someone like me, I'm 23, and I get into the industry.

02:06And then you hear about this, and you've got to think,

02:10if my dad dies, I've got to pay a massive tax, which is disastrous.

02:16And it doesn't encourage new people.

02:19Because you've got to remember, we feed 60% of our country right now.

02:25But in that 60%, 75% of it is done by the small family farm,

02:31what will be crippled by this.

02:34It's disastrous.

02:36Well, you pass something on, but will it be a hobby farm in the end?

02:43You've basically just got a land, sold most of your land.

02:47Because our land, in the end, will go for building, you see.

02:51Because we own right to shift next to the houses.

02:55I don't want it to go, in my lifetime anyway.

03:00Because I love my land.

03:03But if it has to go, it has to.

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