Small Farms and Family Businesses

Lord Bishop of Newcastle Excerpts

Thursday 12th December 2024 Lords Chamber

[The Lord Bishop of Newcastle]

My Lords, I begin by paying tribute to the noble Baroness, Lady Cumberlege. I commend her speech and her lifetime of bold interventions.

Stretching from the Scottish borders to the River Tyne, my diocese is largely made up of farming communities. For many, farming is about much more than making a living and has been their way of life for generations. A tractor horn outside this Chamber yesterday loudly proclaimed that “Old MacDonald has a farm”,’ but for how much longer?

I appreciate that the Government intend to target wealthy landowners buying land to avoid tax, but I fear that they have not adequately considered the impact on tenant farmers. The north-east has the highest regional proportion of tenant farmers. I pay tribute to my noble friend from the north Lord Curry of Kirkharle, who spoke from his own experience. Following the Budget, farming tenants are now faced with a greater lack of security. What assessment has been made, and will be made, of the impact that the changes to inheritance tax will have on tenant farmers?

Furthermore, only 32% of farming land in the north-east is arable. The national average is 52%. Most farmland in the region is used for upland and hill sheep farming. These farms receive a lower income, with the average business income for hill farms in 2023-24 being £23,500. Many farming families in Northumberland are cash poor, and hidden poverty is widespread. Hill farming requires less land than arable farming, meaning that under the new tax reforms, if a family is forced to sell their land to pay inheritance tax, in many cases there would not be enough land left to make the farm viable. As a farmer at the Hexham auction mart said last week: “If I die, that’s it”. What assessment have the Government made of the impact that the changes to inheritance tax will have specifically on upland and hill farmers?

I finish by sharing the situation of a farming family in Northumberland, where three generations are living in one farmhouse, with five adults and three children. Three of the adults have full-time jobs away from the farm to make ends meet but spend their evenings and weekends working on the farm. Last week, the grandfather had to take time off work to sell his sheep at the auction mart. Families such as this one illustrate how farming is not simply a way to make money but their way of life. If a death were to occur in this family, three generations would be left without their home.

I urge the Government to truly consider the impact of these reforms and encourage them to have continued dialogue and an assessment of the impact on farming families and rural communities—the people to whom we owe the food on our tables.

Autumn Budget 2024

Lord Bishop of Newcastle Excerpts

Monday 11th November 2024 Lords Chamber

[The Lord Bishop of Newcastle]

My Lords, I feel my B in GCSE maths is challenging my ability to speak with any fiscal authority in this debate, but I am glad of the opportunity to do so. I offer my congratulations to the noble Lord, Lord Booth-Smith, on his excellent maiden speech and I welcome him to your Lordships’ House.

I recognise that the decisions the Chancellor has made have not been easy, but balanced alongside the Government’s long-term priorities we must consider how this Budget will serve the needs of people who are struggling today, and affect what surely must be a significant long-term ambition—perhaps I can use the word “mission”—to improve social cohesion.

As I listened to the Chancellor’s Budget speech, I was struck by two things: first, the determination to grasp nettles; and, secondly, the resolute focus on investment. Increasing fiscal confidence creates the right conditions for growth. This has short, medium and long-term objectives and outcomes. People, communities, organisations, businesses and even this Chamber represent complex ecosystems. The granularity on the ground makes it harder to see this complexity, yet its effect locally can be keenly felt. For example, the decision not to proceed with dualling the section of the A1 that lies in the north of my diocese arguably makes that area and its connectivity routes less attractive to potential investors. The 50% increase in the bus fare cap will impact people who can least afford it, further disconnecting people from places and opportunities. The flipside is welcoming the alignment of Budget priorities with regional devolution. This is having a positive impact on the north-east region; increased voice, agency and confidence have the potential to raise aspirations.

Last week, I attended the Northern Farming Conference in Hexham. I commend attempts to address anomalies in the tax system, but I echo the apprehensions I heard at that conference and in this Chamber that this was not a Budget that really understands the needs of those in rural communities who have this year already faced huge challenges from the weather and flooding. I therefore add my voice to those of others urging the Government to rethink the APR decision. Farmers have a key role to play in assuring food security in an increasingly volatile global context. Can the Minister please assure me that the impact of the APR and BPS measures on farming will be assessed and reviewed?

I welcome the extension of the household support fund and the steps taken to reduce the impact of universal credit debt deductions, but we must address why these measures are necessary in the first place. With a disproportionately high number of children living in poverty in the north-east, I believe this Budget missed a crucial opportunity to lift children out of poverty by removing the two-child limit and benefit cap. Child poverty is a stain on our society and I urge the Government to take bolder action in addressing its causes and consequences.

There is much that I welcome in this Budget, but the decisions I have mentioned have consequences that must not be overlooked. I urge the Government to consider the impact of these decisions carefully, making sure that they truly uplift the most vulnerable to ensure the flourishing of all.