Opposition day: UK Farming and Inheritance Tax
181Ayes
339Noes
Defeated · majority 158 · Government won126 did not vote
646 Members · Aye 181 · No 339 · DNV 126 · grey dots in centre are abstentions
Analysis
Commons
Commons
On 4 December 2024, the House of Commons voted on a Conservative opposition day motion (a debate initiated by the main opposition party to scrutinise government policy) calling for the protection of family farms from the government's inheritance tax changes and for the maintenance of agricultural property relief. The motion was defeated by 339 votes to 181. The vote concerned the government's October 2024 Budget decision to cap agricultural property relief (APR), a longstanding tax relief that had allowed farmland and farm businesses to be passed between generations without triggering inheritance tax. From April 2026, inherited agricultural and business assets above 1 million pounds will be subject to inheritance tax at an effective rate of 20 percent. Supporters of the motion argued this threatens the viability of family farms and food security. The government maintained that the current unlimited relief had been exploited by wealthy landowners and investors who were not working farmers, and that the change would only affect the largest estates. The opposition motion united virtually all parties outside the government against the change. Conservatives, Liberal Democrats, the Scottish National Party, Reform UK, Plaid Cymru and the Democratic Unionist Party all voted in favour. All Labour and Labour and Co-operative MPs who voted came down against, with no recorded rebels on the government side. The Greens split, with two voting against the motion alongside the government. This cross-opposition alignment reflected genuine rural anxiety but also the political opportunity the farming tax debate presented to opposition parties heading into a sustained campaign against the Budget measure, which continued through related Finance Bill votes in early 2025.
Voting Aye meant
Support the motion criticising the inheritance tax changes affecting farms, backing exemptions or relief for agricultural property to protect family farms
Voting No meant
Oppose the motion, defending the government's inheritance tax reform as a fair measure to close a loophole exploited by wealthy landowners, not primarily affecting ordinary family farmers
Each row is one party. The stacked bar gives the within-party split of Aye / No / Absent; the columns on the right give the raw counts. The whip column shows the published party position — “Free vote” means the whip was formally removed for this division.
Party
Whip
Aye / No / Abs
Aye
No
Abs
Labour Party
Whipped No
0
299
62
Conservative and Unionist Party
Whipped Aye
93
0
23
Liberal Democrats
Whipped Aye
63
0
9
Labour and Co-operative Party
Whipped No
0
33
9
Independent
—
4
5
5
Scottish National Party
Whipped Aye
8
0
1
Reform UK
Whipped Aye
6
0
1
Sinn Féin
—
0
0
7
Democratic Unionist Party
Whipped Aye
3
0
2
Green Party of England and Wales
—
0
2
2
Plaid Cymru
Whipped Aye
4
0
0
Social Democratic and Labour Party
—
0
0
2
Alliance Party of Northern Ireland
—
0
0
1
Restore Britain
—
0
0
1
Speaker
—
0
0
1
Traditional Unionist Voice
—
1
0
0
Ulster Unionist Party
—
1
0
0
Your Party
—
0
1
0
Source · Hansard · UK Parliament Votes API · whip status from announced positions; “free vote” indicates the whip was formally removed
The inheritance tax changes will destroy family farming; government figures are wildly inaccurate and contradicted by professional valuers; policy represents betrayal of election promises and will force farms to sell land to non-farmers.Conservative · Voted aye · Read full speech (3,702 words) →
Reforms are necessary to fix the £22 billion fiscal hole; they maintain generous relief for family farms (£1m combined relief plus 50% relief above that); nearly three-quarters of farms claiming relief will pay no additional tax.Labour · Voted no · Read full speech (4,738 words) →
While acknowledging prior Conservative failures on farming transitions, the inheritance tax policy is poorly designed and will harm family farms already struggling from scheme implementation failures; a working farm exemption should have been included.Liberal Democrat · Voted aye · Read full speech (3,066 words) →
Professional advice suggests 65% of small family farms in Northern Ireland will be affected; the government fundamentally misunderstands the impact of its policy.DUP · Voted aye · Read full speech (118 words) →
Labour government provides clarity and missions for farming; should use procurement power to back British farming and protect farmers from low-standard trade competition.Labour · Voted no · Read full speech (2,102 words) →
Victoria Atkins's record as Health Secretary and Treasury Minister was destructive; the government is bringing stability to the economy and farmers' profitability.Labour · Voted no · Read full speech (110 words) →
The policy represents betrayal because both the Prime Minister and Secretary of State explicitly promised before the election that these changes would not be made.Conservative · Voted aye · Read full speech (619 words) →
The government failed to conduct proper impact assessment and did not consider alternative mechanisms like business roll-over relief that would target wealthier non-farmers; farmers aged near retirement need specific mitigations.Conservative · Voted aye · Read full speech (1,159 words) →
Sources
Division dataUK Parliament Votes API
DebateHansard · Commons
Stance analysisAI analysis · Claude 4.x
LicenceOpen Parliament Licence v3.0