Support for Farmers

Debate between Terry Jermy and Ashley Fox

Wednesday 21st October 2026 Commons Chamber

[Terry Jermy (South West Norfolk) (Lab)]

I welcome my hon. Friend the Minister to her place. I am so pleased to see her there, and I know that her rural credentials are strong.

As the Member of Parliament for South West Norfolk, one of the most productive farming constituencies in the country, it has been a privilege to spend a significant amount of my time over the past two years meeting farmers, landowners, growers and rural businesses across the area. Farming is not simply another sector in South West Norfolk; it shapes our landscape, supports our local economy, underpins food production, contributes to environmental stewardship and helps to define the very character of our communities. Since being elected, I have made a conscious effort to get out on to farms and to listen, and I firmly believe that good policy starts with understanding the reality on the ground. That means standing in fields and walking farmyards, and hearing directly from the people who deal with the practical challenges and the opportunities facing farming every single day. I welcome that our Farming Minister has been undertaking that engagement, too, and I know that it has been valued by the industry.

I have now met more than 100 South West Norfolk farmers, and from those meetings I have been struck by their resilience, dedication and innovation. Agriculture today requires farmers to balance a growing range of responsibilities. Alongside producing high-quality food, businesses manage environmental outcomes, adapt to changing weather patterns, embrace new technologies and respond to market pressures. The scale of that challenge demonstrates the professionalism and adaptability of modern farming, and many are doing that while operating on extremely fine margins.

The concerns of a farmer in Weeting will likely differ from those in Nordelph. There is no one-size-fits-all solution for farming, and one clear theme from my visits is how important confidence, clarity and certainty are for farming businesses making long-term decisions.

[Sir Ashley Fox]

In the hon. Gentleman’s discussions with farmers in South West Norfolk, are they content with the Government changes to agricultural property relief, or do they still think the family farm tax should be abolished in its entirety?

[Terry Jermy]

The vast majority of farms in my constituency are small family farms. It was campaigning from constituency MPs like myself and others that got the changes to that policy so that it now works for the vast majority of those impacted.

Over the past decade or so, farmers have been at the sharp end of changing political landscapes, with Brexit and its fundamental change to farming policy being the most profound, because farming is an industry that plans years ahead. Decisions made today on investment, machinery, water infrastructure, environmental delivery and succession have consequences that last decades. Farmers can adapt to change and seize new opportunities when there is a clear direction of travel, but it becomes difficult for businesses to plan with confidence when there is a lack of certainty.

In countless conversations, farmers have told me they are desperate for that clarity, consistency and long-term thinking from Government. I hope that the farming roadmap developed under this Labour Government is the start of that approach. One of the biggest issues raised has been around profitability. The fundamental challenge that remains is in ensuring that farming businesses can generate sustainable returns. While discussions often focus on environmental schemes or regulation—this scheme or that scheme—as is the case with the Lib Dem motion before the House, neither environmental ambition nor long-term investment can be achieved if a farm business itself is not financially viable.

Farming continues to be treated as a political football. Cosplay Reform Members may have a Barbour jacket and a flat cap, but do they actually have a single farming policy? I note their absence from today’s debate. And what of the Tories, desperate as ever to be the face of rural Britain like it is some divine right, while completely ignoring the demise of farming under their watch? It was their withdrawal from the common agricultural policy that left our farmers exposed with no plan in place. It will be some years before many farmers will forgive that level of betrayal by the Conservatives.

Many farmers tell me that despite producing world-class food, margins are often squeezed by factors beyond their control. That limited agency over their destiny feeds into their frustration and the poor mental health of many farmers, which is a real concern.

Looking forward, I remain optimistic about the future of British farming. There are many significant challenges, but there are opportunities too. We have some of the most productive farmland to be found anywhere in the world, we have farmers who are innovative, entrepreneurial and committed to producing high-quality food, and we have growing opportunities around technology, precision agriculture, water management and sustainable food production. However, success is not guaranteed. It will require a recognition that food production and environmental improvements are not competing objectives. Done properly, they can and must go hand in hand.

To conclude, I have three main asks of the Government. First, with the Budget looming, we must raise the annual investment allowance and consider what I have called the green investment allowance, because incentivising investment in rural areas into things like reservoirs and revamping poultry sheds will deliver greater environmental benefits than many SFI schemes.