A group of influential MPs urged the government to delay the disputed plan to farmers’ estate tax changes to “allowing better tax policies” and protecting vulnerable farmers by giving them more time to seek advice.

The Environmental, Food and Rural Affairs (EFRA) Commission calls on the government to announce an overhaul of agricultural property relief and commercial property relief until October 2026 before taking effect.

Such a move “will allow for better tax policy development and provide governments with the opportunity to convey a positive long-term vision of agriculture,” the report said. They added that the planned changes “threatening to affect the most vulnerable” and that pauses will give them “more time to seek appropriate professional advice” while giving the government time to consider other options.

Prime Minister Rachel Reeves announced in October that plans to bring farms and other agricultural property into the inheritance tax rules caused a stir in order to raise funds for public services and close tax loopholes for some wealthy land owners.

Reeves' plan to manufacture heirs for farm exemptions ended decades of exemptions, paying over £1 million for 20% of the value of agricultural and commercial property, which sparked massive protests in recent months and caused ministers' speeches to be flooded by tractor Horns.

Members of the cross-party EFRA committee raised concerns that the changes announced in the budget were made without sufficient consultation, impact assessment or affordability assessment and at risk of unintended consequences.

Despite widespread support for the government’s estate tax changes, the Commission called on the minister to consult on its proposals to avoid harming small family farms.

EFRA committee chairman and Liberal Democratic MP Alistair Carmichael criticized the way the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs communicated with farmers, especially the sudden closure of a critical post-off-competition subsidy program, which is a sustainable agricultural motivation.

"The way the government is behaving in recent months has clearly had a negative impact on farmers' confidence and well-being," Carmichael said.

"We have seen that Devra has poor communication with farmers, sometimes confusing, sometimes contradictory messaging. There is a lack of adequate consultation. Policies affecting farmers are not properly considered or explained their impact or reasoning."

He urged the government to adopt the committee's recommendations, saying ministers have the opportunity to rebuild trust and confidence in the agricultural sector.

“Farmers should be an essential element in government planning to achieve food security and restore and protect the environment,” he said.