In a press release issued last Friday, the Ulster Farmers’ Union (UFU) set out the next steps it will focus on to try to overturn the changes to inheritance tax (IHT) proposed by British chancellor Rachel Reeves from April 2026.

Describing what lies ahead as “a marathon, not a sprint”, UFU president William Irvine said the organisation will be lobbying key people in government, exploring legal options and ramping up efforts to educate the public on the potential long-term impact of IHT changes. It will also be working with professional bodies to debunk misleading figures from the UK Treasury, which suggest only a small number of larger farmers will end up paying IHT once the new rules are introduced.

It is this latter point which is crucial to potentially changing minds within government.

As outlined on p11, a lot of work has already been done and reports written. But fundamentally, this all comes down to the argument that farmers hand over land from generation to generation, not cash.

There just isn’t the cash generated to pay this tax. For example, DAERA’s own analysis of farm business incomes shows the typical lowland cattle and sheep farm of 171 acres generated just over £21,000 in income in the last two financial years. In the current market that farm is easily worth over £3m, before including the value of livestock and machinery. To suggest that small, family farms won’t be impacted by the government’s IHT changes is simply ridiculous.

We can only hope that government ministers listen to reason. But in the meantime, it is important that as an industry, we stick together and do not get drawn into unhelpful online debates about whether the UFU should be more proactive or militant in its approach.

Blocking roads, etc, is a last resort when all else has failed. Such actions would be totally counterproductive at this stage.