Peter Gittins: Trump exposes Starmer’s lack of empathy for farmers
© Peter Gittins What stayed with me from US president Donald Trump’s visit to Britain was the exchange at a press conference after a reporter asked: “How important are farmers to a country?”
He didn’t hesitate. He defended exempting family farms from “death taxes” and spoke with a clarity I rarely hear from Westminster.
He recognised the reality of the very farm I grew up on and still live on – how farming is a high-asset, low-margin business.
See also: Peter Gittins: Small farmers face a huge power imbalance
About the author
Most of us aren’t chasing big profits; we’re here for the land, our families, and the chance to pass it on.
He even joked that many farmers would keep a muddy yard over a penthouse – and he wasn’t wrong.
He linked financial stress to rising suicides in rural America, speaking about the debt trap: borrowing to keep the business afloat, then drowning in repayments at the mercy of bankers.
Whatever you think of Trump, his answer made Keir Starmer – who was sitting beside him – look uneasy.
When Starmer replied, he offered the usual politician’s dismissal of the key issue, insisting it wasn’t relevant.
Our suicide rates are lower; tax can be spread over 10 years. It rang hollow. The emotional reality of succession barely featured.
And it left me asking how is it possible that a multi-billionaire US real-estate tycoon understands British farmers better than our own prime minister?
Trump showed more empathy and realism about UK farming than anyone in our current government.
Just what will it take to reverse the inheritance tax changes? You can unravel the flaws in just a few minutes.
Suggestions like transferring assets under the seven-year rule overlook the practical impossibilities for many farming families.
Placing land in a trust is not straightforward.
Claims that farmers already benefit from half the rate applied to the general public ignore the realities of farmers and the production of public goods.
So when ministers say farmers must “make sacrifices”, I fear farming families like my own could be the sacrifice.