The Upper Bann MP is the lead signatory on the letter, which was also signed by UFU officials and a 20-strong membership delegation who were in Westminster this week, as part of a UFU-led engagement initiative representing farming families from across Northern Ireland.

The letter addressed to Chancellor Rachel Reeves reads as follows:
 
We the undersigned farmers speak for the wider farming community in every county of Northern Ireland, and our message is clear. The proposed changes to Agricultural Property Relief (APR) and Business Property Relief (BPR), as they stand, represent a direct and immediate threat to the future of family farming. With the Budget fast approaching, we urge you to halt these reforms and to recognise the profound damage they would inflict if pushed through without proper scrutiny or regional consideration.
 
Northern Ireland’s farming structure is fundamentally different from elsewhere in the United Kingdom. Family farms dominate, land is extremely scarce, valuations are disproportionately high, and once farmland is sold it is lost from agriculture forever. Any policy that risks forcing the sale or fragmentation of farmland strikes at the continuity of farm businesses, at the heart of rural communities, and at the stability of our agri-food economy. The UFU has warned repeatedly that the consequences of these proposals in Northern Ireland would be uniquely severe.
 
Farm families are asset rich but cash poor. When a farmer dies, there is often no liquidity to meet a large tax bill without disposing of the land itself. APR was created to reflect this reality. To proceed with altering it significantly, in a looming Budget, and without a dedicated Northern-Ireland-specific impact assessment, would put generational family farms at risk of collapse.
 
The strength of feeling within the industry is demonstrated clearly by the UFU President, William Irvine, who has said; “We have had no choice but to bring members to Westminster as the Chancellor is clearly not listening, and we are clear and united in our message, the family farm tax must be scrapped. We want to engage with as many politicians as possible to make clear the devastating impact these proposals will have on agriculture in Northern Ireland. There is still time to change course and work with us to protect family farms.” His words reflect the unity and urgency of this appeal.
 
It is vital to be clear about what is at stake. Food security is national security. Undermining the viability of family farms undermines the ability of the United Kingdom to feed itself. Once productive agricultural land is lost, and once a generation is pushed out of farming, it cannot simply be restored. These proposals, if implemented as drafted, would inflict lasting and irreversible damage on our food-producing capacity.
 
Anxiety across the sector is rising sharply. Families who have built succession plans over decades now face the prospect of those plans becoming impossible. Investment is being paused. Confidence is weakening. The next generation is being left uncertain about its future in farming. The UFU members who sign this letter hear these concerns repeatedly in every part of Northern Ireland. This is not an isolated issue. It is a sector-wide warning.
 
For these reasons, the proposal should not simply be paused. It should be scrapped entirely. The scale of harm it would inflict on family farming in Northern Ireland and indeed across the UK is too great, and too permanent, for anything short of complete withdrawal. Once productive farmland is forced onto the open market to meet a sudden tax burden, it is lost to agriculture forever. Once confidence in succession planning collapses, it cannot easily be rebuilt. Protecting food security, which is national security, means removing a policy that would drive irreversible damage across the farming sector. Scrapping these proposals is the only responsible option to safeguard family farms, rural communities and the future of domestic food production.
 
Chancellor, this is a moment for the Labout government to demonstrate that it understands the seriousness of the issue and the scale of the potential harm. The future of family farming, rural communities, and domestic food production is directly at risk. Pressing ahead without pause would inflict immediate and lasting damage. Listening now, and acting with caution, would protect the very people who keep this nation fed.
 
We would welcome the opportunity to meet with you and your officials at the earliest possible date.
 
Yours sincerely,
Carla Lockhart MP