Rural campaigners are urging the general public to help British farmers hit by the latest government budget by using a new tool which emails MPs.
The 'stop the family farm tax' online lobby tool, created by the Countryside Alliance, directs emails to inboxes of MPs across the country.
It calls on parliamentarians to lobby the chancellor to reconsider her controversial decision to change inheritance tax relief rules on farmland, as well as taxing twin cab pickups.
Since going live, over 2,000 people have already fired off emails to MPs, including over 50 newly elected MPs in rural constituencies.
The campaigning group's lobby email warns that the autumn budget has dealt a 'devastating blow' to many family farms.
"Scrapping inheritance tax relief on farmland and taxing twin cab pickups are just two of the many measures that will hit farmers hard," the email says.
“Our countryside is more than just landscapes - it contributes towards the nation’s food supply, its economy and its well-being.
"But the budget proposals threaten the very fabric of rural life by putting family farms and hardworking communities at risk.”
Farm leaders have warned that changes made to agricultural property relief (APR) could deal a devastating blow to family farms.
With young farmers already struggling, they have said that a potential 20% inheritance tax could make it impossible to keep these farms in the family.
The Countryside Alliance's email says this move "risks stripping rural Britain of its lifeblood: the small, family-run farms that sustain our rural communities and food security".
Meanwhile, the new tax reclassification of double-cab pickups, which are vital vehicles for farmers, means they will be taxed as company cars starting in April 2025.
This reclassification could raise taxes by over 200%, with the Countryside Alliance warning this would make it unaffordable for many.
It warns that without the MPs 'immediate intervention', these policies risk "irreparable harm to the livelihoods of countless hardworking farmers and the future of rural communities."
It comes as farmers across the UK are set to descend on central London as part of a rally against the government's recent autumn budget.
Organised by the NFU, the 'mass lobby of MPs' will take place at the Church House conference centre in Westminster, on 19 November.
Yesterday, the NFU issued an update on the rally, saying it was now at 'full capacity', with unregistered farmers told not to travel to the capital.
Farmers in Scotland have also organised a rally which will take place outside the Scottish parliament, to send a message of the importance of the industry.
The protest will take place outside the Scottish parliament on 28 November, ahead of the Scottish government’s own budget which is due to take place on 4 December.
