No relief for farmers in budget says Nicholson

FARMERS relying on red diesel are facing a ‘tipping point’ next summer, according to Armagh Ulster Unionist Chairman Sam Nicholson.

He the latest budget also offered no relief from the controversial "Family Farm Tax”.

Reacting to the budget, Mr Nicholson said: “This was the first Budget since Labour’s Family Farm Tax came into force in April, and the Chancellor had every opportunity to put it right. Unfortunately, despite intense lobbying from a wide range of agricultural organisations, John Healey has refused to touch it.”

“Ever since this tax change was confirmed last year, it has piled immense stress and worry onto family farms—a reality backed up by nine out of ten farmers in a recent industry survey. Even more concerning, nearly half of respondents stated that the next generation intended to take over the farm is now less willing or less able to do so. That is the devastating reality playing out in farmhouses across Northern Ireland, yet the Government has completely ignored it.”

“Our local MP, Robin Swann, has been fighting this tax at Westminster from the very beginning alongside farming families and the Ulster Farmers' Union (UFU). They took their case directly to the heart of Parliament, but unfortunately, the government has refused to act.

“Worse still is buried in the detail. There is not a single line in this Budget addressing Agricultural or Business Property Relief, and the current cut to red diesel duty will only run until the first of July next year. After that, the duty will revert to pre-2022 levels and rise with inflation. This represents a dangerous tipping point for every farm business depending on it; this relief should have been made permanent.

“I will give credit where it is due: suspending tariffs on fertiliser until the end of 2027 and on kerosene until the end of 2028 will provide some relief. The kerosene decision is particularly vital for the thousands of rural households here that rely on oil to heat their homes, and extending the general fuel duty cut is a welcome move.

“However, there is absolutely nothing to index-link our ring-fenced agriculture budget. Furthermore, the Government is pressing ahead with expanding the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, which will only burden our local producers with extra costs and endless paperwork.

“We all hoped for a budget that genuinely backed our agricultural sector. Instead, farm families have been given a budget that takes with one hand while giving very little back with the other, all while the damaging family farm tax remains firmly in place.”