Lord Roborough Portrait

Lord Roborough

Conservative - Excepted Hereditary

Became Member: 25th October 2022

Shadow Minister (Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

(since September 2024)

Lord Roborough is not a member of any APPGs
Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
1st Dec 2023 - 5th Jul 2024
Arbitration Bill [HL] Special Public Bill Committee
24th Jan 2024 - 27th Mar 2024
Finance Bill Sub-Committee
5th Sep 2023 - 1st Dec 2023


Division Voting information

During the current Parliament, Lord Roborough has voted in 11 divisions, and never against the majority of their Party.
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Debates during the 2024 Parliament

Speeches made during Parliamentary debates are recorded in Hansard. For ease of browsing we have grouped debates into individual, departmental and legislative categories.

Sparring Partners
Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Labour)
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
(31 debate interactions)
Baroness Bakewell of Hardington Mandeville (Liberal Democrat)
Liberal Democrat Lords Spokesperson (Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
(7 debate interactions)
Lord Sikka (Labour)
(2 debate interactions)
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Department Debates
HM Treasury
(7 debate contributions)
Cabinet Office
(1 debate contributions)
View All Department Debates
Legislation Debates
Crown Estate Bill [HL] 2024-26
(1,821 words contributed)
View All Legislation Debates
View all Lord Roborough's debates

Lords initiatives

These initiatives were driven by Lord Roborough, and are more likely to reflect personal policy preferences.


Lord Roborough has not introduced any legislation before Parliament

Lord Roborough has not co-sponsored any Bills in the current parliamentary sitting


Latest 34 Written Questions

(View all written questions)
Written Questions can be tabled by MPs and Lords to request specific information information on the work, policy and activities of a Government Department
25th Nov 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to keep monthly data on farmer, landowner and family business owner suicides and suicide attempts.

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.

Please see the letter attached from the National Statistician and Chief Executive of the UK Statistics Authority.

The Lord Roborough

House of Lords

London

SW1A 0PW

29 November 2024

Dear Lord Roborough,

As National Statistician and Chief Executive of the UK Statistics Authority, I am responding to your Parliamentary Question asking whether we plan to keep monthly data on farmer, landowner and family business owner suicides and suicide attempts (HL2859).

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) publishes annual suicide death registration statistics for England and Wales[1]. Also published regularly are provisional statistics on suicide death registrations by quarter in England[2]. As these statistics are based on death registrations, they do not inform us about suicide attempts. The ONS holds death registrations for England and Wales only; separate figures for Scotland and Northern Ireland and are available from the National Records of Scotland (NRS)[3] and the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA)[4], respectively.

Suicide deaths are few enough in number that disaggregating them by age group or region in our quarterly provisional statistics for England presents very small numbers for some groups. Statistics such as change in rates of suicide deaths for small groups can therefore be volatile and uncertain. As such, while the ONS is committed to continuing its quarterly publication of suicide statistics and analysing suicide deaths by occupation using annual data[5], a more regular presentation of suicide deaths by occupation is not planned.

The Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID) produce a statistical report on near to real-time suspected suicide surveillance (nRTSSS) for England[6], which is revised monthly, but does not present suicides by occupation.

Yours sincerely,

Professor Sir Ian Diamond

[1]https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/birthsdeathsandmarriages/deaths/bulletins/suicidesintheunitedkingdom/2023

[2]https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/birthsdeathsandmarriages/deaths/bulletins/quarterlysuicidedeathregistrationsinengland/2001to2023registrationsandquarter1jantomartoquarter2aprtojune2024provisionaldata

[3]https://www.nrscotland.gov.uk/publications/probable-suicides-2023/

[4]https://www.nisra.gov.uk/statistics/cause-death/suicide-deaths

[5]https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/birthsdeathsandmarriages/deaths/adhocs/15043suicidebyoccupationenglandandwales2011to2021registrations

[6]https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/near-to-real-time-suspected-suicide-surveillance-nrtsss-for-england/statistical-report-near-to-real-time-suspected-suicide-surveillance-nrtsss-for-england-for-the-15-months-to-august-2023

Baroness Twycross
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
2nd Dec 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government what consideration the examining authorities gave to the impact on farming in considering consent for the Cottam, Mallard Pass and Gate Burton solar farms recently approved by the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero.

For each of these cases, the Examining Authorities’ Reports have been published alongside the Secretary of State’s Decision Letters on the Planning Inspectorate project pages. The consideration given to the impact on farming, as well as all other relevant matters, are set out in those documents.

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath
Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
4th Sep 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government what consultation and information gathering on food security and rural employment they undertook prior to the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero’s decision to approve large new solar farms on agricultural land.

The Planning Act requires applicants to carry out consultations of their proposals at the pre-application stage of the process. During the application stage the Examining Authority will also undertake consultation with Interested Parties and advisory organisations such as the Statutory Nature Bodies.

As the decision takers, Ministers consider all the evidence and views on both positive and negative impacts and weighs these up with reference to the relevant National Policy Statement. This consideration is detailed in the published Decision Letter and accompanying assessments for each case. This statutory process is followed for all significant energy infrastructure, including large solar farms.

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath
Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
26th Nov 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government what percentage of agricultural land is currently covered by countryside and environmental schemes; and what is their target for that coverage.

As of 1 October 2024, there are over 67,000 live agri-environment scheme agreements. This is the most popular accepted scheme agreements have been in history. The area under agri-environment schemes is a statistic that was not collected by the last Government. It is currently under development by Defra and is due for publication in the first half of 2025.

We recently announced that the farming budget will be £5 billion over the next two financial years, including the largest ever budget directed at sustainable food production and nature’s recovery in our country’s history: £1.8 billion for Environmental Land Management (ELM) schemes to boost Britain’s food security and accelerate the transition to a more resilient and sustainable farming sector.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
15th Oct 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they intend to publish the forthcoming Land Use Framework before it is adopted; and whether they will place a copy in the Library of the House.

The Government will publish a consultation on land use this year to inform the publication of a Land Use Framework for England. The land use framework will support farmers and nature recovery, based on an evidence base and spatial analysis. We will set out our approach to parliamentary engagement in due course.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
15th Oct 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will allow parliamentary time for a debate on the forthcoming Land Use Framework before it is adopted.

The Government will publish a consultation on land use this year to inform the publication of a Land Use Framework for England. The land use framework will support farmers and nature recovery, based on an evidence base and spatial analysis. We will set out our approach to parliamentary engagement in due course.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
14th Oct 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government what action the Marine Management Organisation has taken against fishing vessels operating out of Mevagissey illegally using nets to target sea bass and exceeding their annual bycatch allowance.

The Marine Management Organisation (MMO) undertakes regular intelligence led patrols across the South-West, including Mevagissey, to monitor bass fishing. From July to September, MMO undertook 174 fishing vessel inspections in Cornwall. Mevagissey sees weekly patrols at varying times of day to inspect fishing activity and inspections will cover authorisations to fish for bass and physical fishing gear on board. MMO also conducts inspections at sea and works alongside Cornwall Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authority (CIFCA). In addition to physical inspections all data sources are validated and monitored including catch and landing records, annual bycatch allowances and uptake.

The MMO is aware of the concerns raised locally and will continue to work with the fishing industry and Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authorities to improve collaboration between regulators on targeted enforcement and improved communication and understanding of bass regulations, a commitment in the Bass Fisheries Management Plan published in December 2023.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
14th Oct 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government what enforcement actions, including fines and prosecutions, the Marine Management Organisation has undertaken over the past year to protect bluefin tuna from illegal fishing; and what assessment have they made of the extent to which these enforcement actions are sufficient to comply with the UK's obligations under the rules of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas.

The Marine Management Organisation (MMO) undertakes detailed traceability checks on the new bluefin tuna commercial fishery. MMO checks each individual fish landed where resource allows. This includes checks on purchasers of bluefin tuna including physical premises checks. Landing inspections and routine presence in ports act as a further deterrent to illegal activity. The planning, implementation and management of this fishery is in accordance with the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
10th Oct 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government whether any underspend in the 2023–24 budget for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs will be rolled forward to enhance future years’ budgets.

The Department moved £105.3 million of CDEL budget from 2023-2024 to 2024-25 using HM Treasury’s Budget Exchange at Supplementary Estimates.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
10th Oct 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government what percentage of wild badgers need to be vaccinated to achieve the same efficacy in reducing bovine tuberculosis as culling badgers; and what assessment they have made of the feasibility of this.

Research indicates that trapping methods used for badger vaccination result in the capture of approximately 50-70% of badgers in a given area, and this level of coverage is associated with significant disease control benefits in badger populations.

Unfortunately the past Government neglected to use its R&D budget to fully explore the problem so information on this subject, as well as badger resurgence rates is not as clear as it might be. The Labour Government has announced that they will use the R&D budget to ensure that decisions to best tackle bovine tuberculosis (TB) are informed by science.

While we are gathering a better understanding on the subject, badger vaccination is now underway in several large areas in England demonstrating that vaccination is feasible at a large scale in a range of situations.

Research from Ireland also suggests that badger vaccination is not inferior to badger culling as a means to control TB in cattle.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
7th Oct 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to negotiate an increased share of quota for UK-landed blue fin tuna in the ongoing negotiations with the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas.

The UK continues to fully engage in the ongoing negotiations at the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) on the allocation of bluefin tuna quota, with a view to securing a fairer share of the quota when the next ‘Total Allowable Catch’ is negotiated in 2025, to take effect in 2026.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
7th Oct 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have produced a justice impact test for the Water (Special Measures) Bill; and, if so, whether they will place a copy in the Library of the House.

The Government has produced a regulatory impact assessment for the Water (Special Measures) Bill. The impact assessment is currently with the Regulatory Policy Committee for review ahead of publication.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
7th Oct 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have produced an environmental principles assessment for the Water (Special Measures) Bill; and, if so, whether they will place a copy in the Library of the House.

The Government has produced a regulatory impact assessment for the Water (Special Measures) Bill. The impact assessment is currently with the Regulatory Policy Committee for review ahead of publication.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
7th Oct 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have produced an equalities impact assessment for the Water (Special Measures) Bill; and, if so, whether they will place a copy in the Library of the House.

The Government has produced a regulatory impact assessment for the Water (Special Measures) Bill. The impact assessment is currently with the Regulatory Policy Committee for review ahead of publication.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
7th Oct 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have produced a regulatory impact assessment for the Water (Special Measures) Bill; and, if so, whether they will place a copy in the Library of the House.

The Government has produced a regulatory impact assessment for the Water (Special Measures) Bill. The impact assessment is currently with the Regulatory Policy Committee for review ahead of publication.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
7th Oct 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have for the Environment Agency to play a role in the planning system in order for improvements in slurry and dirty water handling infrastructure to be approved and implemented.

Tackling water pollution, including from slurry, is a priority for this Government. The Environment Agency plays a vital role in supporting the planning system at a strategic and local level to deliver improvements for the environment and will continue to do so.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
11th Sep 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the current quota for landing bluefin tuna in the light of the success of the species in UK territorial waters.

The UK Government has been actively assessing and adjusting the quota for landing eastern Atlantic bluefin tuna (BFT), reflecting the species' resurgence in UK waters. As an independent member of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT), in 2023 the UK received a quota of 65 tonnes, which was an increase from previous years. This quota was divided to support both commercial and tag and release scientific fisheries, with 39 tonnes used for a small-scale trial commercial fishery.

In 2024, the UK quota is 66 tonnes. Sixteen tonnes are being used for recreational fishing and 39 tonnes for the continued trial commercial fishery. The remaining quota is being used for commercial bycatch and tagging programmes.

Decisions on how the quota is used have been made to ensure that BFT fisheries meet our international commitments, contribute to delivering Fisheries Act 2020 objectives, and reflect stakeholder interests including both the commercial and recreational sectors. In 2023, Defra commissioned an evaluation of UK BFT fisheries. The report has been published here: Impact Evaluation of Bluefin Tuna Quota Allocation - MF0740 (defra.gov.uk). Defra is continuing to evaluate the social, economic, and environmental impacts of UK BFT fisheries in 2024.

Any changes to the future UK BFT quota will depend on whether the Total Allowable Catch (TAC) established by ICCAT increases or decreases (the next TAC will be established in 2025 for the years 2026-2028) and on the outcomes of ongoing negotiations on quota shares at ICCAT.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
11th Sep 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government what consideration they have given to requiring the Forestry Commission to increase the number of tree species supported for new planting in order to increase the resilience of forests to climate change.

The UK Forestry Standard (UKFS) supports both coniferous and broadleaf woodlands. The latest update to the UKFS will come into force on 1 October 2024. All afforestation projects in England should conform to the UKFS requirements to ensure that the right trees are being planted in the right place and version five does not allow a single species to constitute more than 65% of a new forest. Primary and secondary forestry species, as defined by Forest Research, are eligible for funding through the England Woodland Creation Offer; in addition, emerging forestry species can constitute up to 15% of the trees planted although this element will be screened to ensure they are appropriate to the site and local wildlife, and their planting sites are recorded.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
11th Sep 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of badger predation on the nests of UK Red List bird species such as lapwings and curlews.

The Government has not specifically assessed the impact of badger predation on the nests of UK Red List bird species. However, as opportunistic omnivores badgers have a varied diet and birds comprise only a small proportion of this and then mostly as carrion. While some predation does occur, there is no conclusive evidence that badgers have an impact on the conservation of ground-nesting birds such as lapwing and curlew.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
11th Sep 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government what trials they intend to conduct and publish on the efficacy of vaccinating badgers in the wild against bovine tuberculosis, and its impact on transmission to cattle, before transitioning from culling to vaccination.

There is already a significant evidence base which underpins the use of badger vaccination as a tool for the control of bovine tuberculosis (TB). Trials on captive badgers, modelling studies and field studies on wild badgers all indicate that badger vaccination will significantly reduce the risk of infection and spread of disease within badger populations. Logically, as badgers cause a proportion of cattle breakdowns each year, and since badger vaccination has been proven to reduce the disease burden in the badger population, vaccination should result in a reduction in TB incidence in cattle where badgers are the source of infection. This has also been demonstrated by large scale field trials in Ireland which found that badger vaccination is not inferior to badger culling at controlling TB in cattle. Vaccination would also play a role in protecting healthy badgers, preventing the spread of TB from cattle to badgers.

On 30 August, the Government announced the start of work to refresh the Bovine TB strategy for England, to end the badger cull by the end of this parliament and drive down disease to save cattle and farmers’ livelihoods. This includes establishing a new Badger Vaccinator Field Force to increase badger vaccination delivery to drive down TB rates and protect badgers.

Wider deployment of badger vaccination will increase opportunities for further research on its effect in badgers and cattle, by creating the large and contiguous areas of vaccination needed to be able to detect an effect. Accordingly, as part of this recent announcement, the Government has committed to rapidly analyse the effect of badger vaccination on the incidence of TB in cattle, to encourage farmers to take part and provide greater confidence that doing so will have a positive effect on their cattle. This will build on the analytical work that is already underway in the Animal and Plant Health Agency using a “herd-level” analysis of historic badger vaccination data.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
11th Sep 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government what consideration they have given to raising the goal for National Parks to achieve net carbon neutrality by 2040.

Protected Landscapes (both National Parks and National Landscapes) will be vital to our national targets, including net zero. We are exploring how the Government can empower them to deliver on their full potential - including in protecting nature’s carbon sinks, such as peatlands and woodlands. The Government welcomes the international leadership from the UK's National Park Authorities in joining the Race to Zero initiative, aiming to become net zero by 2040 and significant carbon sinks by 2050.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
4th Sep 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government whether their planned land use framework will consider renewable energy and other development, as well as food security and nature recovery.

The forthcoming land use framework for England will consider cross-governmental issues such as energy and food security and how we can expand nature-rich habitats such as wetlands, peat bogs and forests.

Spatial planning will play an important role in the delivery of the Government’s growth and clean energy missions, and the land use framework will work hand in hand with the Strategic Spatial Energy Plan. The Government will also explore the opportunities for spatial planning to support the delivery of other types of infrastructure.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
4th Sep 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government what progress they are making to allow for the entry of Woodland Carbon Units and Peatland Carbon Units into the UK Emissions Trading Scheme.

We are exploring the inclusion of greenhouse gas removals in the UK Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS), including the potential inclusion of high integrity woodland carbon, such as Woodland Carbon Units. A consultation was launched in May 2024 and a Government Response will be provided in 2025.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
4th Sep 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they intend to continue their partnership with the British Standards Institute on creating high-integrity natural capital and carbon offsetting standards.

Subject to the outcome of the Spending Review, Defra intends to continue to partner with the British Standards Institution on the Nature Investment Standards Programme.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
4th Sep 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that the Woodland Carbon Code and Peatland Carbon Code are certified under the Integrity Council on Voluntary Carbon Market's Core Carbon Principles.

The Woodland Carbon Code is currently endorsed by ICROA, a leading industry accreditation programme for voluntary carbon market programmes. The Code is supported by a transparent carbon registry and a robust monitoring, reporting and verification system underpinned by third party validation and verification. The Woodland Carbon Code is preparing an application to be assessed for adherence to the Core Carbon Principles Assessment Framework of Integrity Council for the Voluntary Carbon Market and will submit as soon as it can.

The Peatland Code is currently in the process of applying to the Integrity Council on Voluntary Carbon Market's Core Carbon Principles. The Peatland Code also applied to ICROA in March this year. The Peatland Code is awaiting conditional endorsement once the first two verifications have been completed this winter. The Peatland Code (PC) validation and verification bodies (VVBs) are undergoing ISO accreditation under the PC by United Kingdom Accreditation Services (UKAS) which is one of the requirements for ICVCM and ICROA.

Baroness Hayman of Ullock
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
17th Dec 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government what is their estimate of the number of farmers, tenants, partnerships, or limited companies, who do not use agricultural property relief but rely on business property relief, and who will be impacted by the reduction of business property relief for inheritance tax.

The Government published information about the reforms to agricultural property relief and business property relief at www.gov.uk/government/publications/agricultural-property-relief-and-business-property-relief-reforms.

The reforms are expected to affect around 2,000 estates in 2026-27. Around 500 of these are expected to claim agricultural property relief, including those also claiming business property relief. Around 1,500 are expected to claim business property relief. Around 1,000 of these are expected to only hold shares designated as “not listed” on the markets of recognised stock exchanges. This means around 500 estates are expected to claim business property relief on a range of other eligible business assets and pay more inheritance tax.

The reforms mean that around three-quarters of estates claiming business property relief in 2026-27 (excluding those only relating to holding shares designated as “not listed” on the markets of recognised stock exchanges) will not pay any more inheritance tax, nor will around three-quarters of estates claiming agricultural property relief, including where they also claim business property relief.

Lord Livermore
Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
2nd Dec 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the investment that will be lost within family-owned businesses now subject to inheritance tax as a result of changes to the reliefs announced in the Budget.

The Government published information about the reforms to agricultural property relief and business property relief at www.gov.uk/government/publications/agricultural-property-relief-and-business-property-relief-reforms.

It is expected that up to up to 520 estates claiming agricultural property relief will be affected by these reforms. Almost three-quarters of estates claiming agricultural property relief (or those claiming agricultural property relief and business property relief together) each year are expected to be unaffected by these reforms.

In accordance with standard practice, a tax information and impact note will be published alongside the draft legislation before the relevant Finance Bill.

Lord Livermore
Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
2nd Dec 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to make exemptions from the seven-year potentially exempt transaction rule in order to allow farmers and family business owners to gift their businesses without risk of payment of inheritance tax.

The Government published information about the reforms to agricultural property relief and business property relief at www.gov.uk/government/publications/agricultural-property-relief-and-business-property-relief-reforms.

It is expected that up to up to 520 estates claiming agricultural property relief will be affected by these reforms. Almost three-quarters of estates claiming agricultural property relief (or those claiming agricultural property relief and business property relief together) each year are expected to be unaffected by these reforms.

In accordance with standard practice, a tax information and impact note will be published alongside the draft legislation before the relevant Finance Bill.

Lord Livermore
Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
2nd Dec 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan for machinery, buildings and energy infrastructure to be valued at market value or depreciated value for the purposes of business property relief for inheritance tax.

The approach to valuations for inheritance tax purposes is well-established. Valuations are based on the open market value of an asset, in line with the provisions of the Inheritance Tax Act 1984.

Lord Livermore
Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
2nd Dec 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they intend to value family businesses for inheritance tax based on the net asset value or their profitability.

The approach to valuations for inheritance tax purposes is well-established. Valuations are based on the open market value of an asset, in line with the provisions of the Inheritance Tax Act 1984.

Lord Livermore
Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
27th Nov 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of losing agricultural property relief and business property relief for inheritance tax on the long-term ownership of land by private farmers and landowners, as opposed to UK and overseas-controlled corporate and institutional ownership.

The Government published information about the reforms to agricultural property relief and business property relief at www.gov.uk/government/publications/agricultural-property-relief-and-business-property-relief-reforms.

It is expected that up to up to 520 estates claiming agricultural property relief will be affected by these reforms. Almost three quarters of estates claiming agricultural property relief (or those claiming agricultural property relief and business property relief together) are expected to be unaffected.

In accordance with standard practice, a tax information and impact note will be published alongside the draft legislation before the relevant Finance Bill.

Lord Livermore
Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
26th Nov 2024
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they intend to replace investment in farm businesses lost as a result of the reduced agricultural and business property inheritance tax reliefs with an increase in the DEFRA capital budget.

At Autumn Budget 2024, the Government took a number of decisions on tax, welfare, and spending to restore economic stability, fix the public finances, and support public services. These were tough decisions given the situation we inherited from the previous administration, but the Government has done so in a way that makes the tax system fairer and more sustainable. This includes the reforms to agricultural property relief and business property relief.

Despite the fiscal constraints, the Farming and Countryside Programme budget has been protected at £5 billion across the next two years. This includes the largest ever proportion of the budget directed at sustainable food production and nature’s recovery in our country’s history. This will accelerate the transition to a more resilient and sustainable farming sector, supporting investment in farm businesses and boosting Britain’s food security.

Lord Livermore
Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)