MORE than 100 farms in Taunton and Wellington could be hit by a new “tractor tax” which is feared could “ring the death knell” for family run farms in the area.

The Labour Government announced its decision to cut Inheritance Tax Relief for farms, a move MP Gideon Amos and other opponents want scrapped.

The Government has previously said that 27 per cent of farms will be affected by the changes which will cut the levels of inheritance tax relief for farmers.

Mr Amos said the move could ring the “death knell” for family farms in his constituency.

If 27 per cent of farms in Taunton and Wellington were to be hit by these changes, it would affect 116 in total.

Mr Amos has called on the government to, instead, take up Liberal Democrat’s proposals to put forward an additional £1 billion a year in support for farmers.

Mr Amos, MP for both Taunton and Wellington, said: “The government must scrap this disastrous ‘tractor tax’ immediately or risk ringing the death knell for family farms in Taunton and Wellington.

“For years, our local farmers have been forced to endure botched trade deals and cuts to their incomes due to the Conservative Party’s shameful neglect of rural communities.

“The new government’s tax hike will come as yet another hammer blow for farmers.

“The Chancellor should urgently reverse course, scrap the ‘tractor tax’ and take up the Liberal Democrat proposals to give farmers an additional £1 billion a year in support.”

Fellow Liberal Democrat MPs Rachel Gilmour, for Minehead and Tiverton, Anna Sabine, for Frome and East Somerset, and James Wright, the South West Chairman of the Conservative Rural Forum, have also been vocal in their opposition to the move.

Mr Wright said Labour’s proposal, announced in Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ budget on Wednesday, October 30, imposes a tax burden of at least £240,000 on the average English farm.

He says this decision threatens the livelihoods of more than 70,000 farming families across the country, therefore damaging food security, rural communities, and nature recovery.

Mr Wright, who also farms on Exmoor, said: "Labour's new tax threatens the heart of rural communities, where family farms fuel local jobs, schools, and community life.

“This new burden risks farm closures, undermining both livelihoods and vital environmental stewardship — jeopardising the very landscapes we depend on. This is something that Kier Starmer’s Labour simply just don’t understand"

Following the recent budget announcement, the BBC reports the government has said it would be maintaining the £2.4bn farming budget for England in 2025/26.

Food Security Minister Daniel Zeichner said: “Our commitment to farmers and the vital role they play to feed our nation remains steadfast."

The government will extend a freeze on the threshold for inheritance tax to 2030, allowing £325,000 to be inherited tax free. From 2027 inherited pension pots will also be subject to the tax.

Reliefs will be reformed for business and agricultural assets. After £1m, those assets will attract inheritance tax of 20 per cent, The Guardian reports.