For 17 days, the ‘fact checkers’ at BBC Verify were adamant that the government’s figures – rather than the farmers’ – were ‘likely’ to be right.
But this bold claim quietly vanished from the BBC website after Sir Keir Starmer boasted of the BBC backing him.
Rural experts have argued the government’s figure of 500 estates being caught in the tax raid are misleadingly low.
They said the 500 was based on ‘agricultural property relief’ (APR), a tax break relating only to land and buildings, rather than valuable assets such as farm machinery.
While the new £1million tax allowance does encompass land, it also draws in ‘business property’ such as machinery.
A single combine harvester can cost up to £500,000 – potentially wiping out half of the £1million allowance and catching many more farms in the taxman’s dragnet.
On the BBC Verify website, an article devoted to combating ‘misinformation’ had been stating since November 2 that ‘the number of farms likely to be impacted each year is likely to be around 500’.
For 17 days, the ‘fact checkers’ at BBC Verify were adamant that the government’s figures – rather than the farmers’ – were ‘likely’ to be right. Pictured: Farmers protest in central London over the changes to inheritance tax rules in the recent budget
The bold claim quietly vanished from the BBC website after Sir Keir Starmer boasted of the BBC backing him. Pictured: Attendees at the mass rally carried a banner reading ‘stop killing the people who feed you’
Rural experts have argued the government’s figure of 500 estates being caught in the tax raid are misleadingly low. Pictured: Protesting farmers fill Whitehall opposite Downing Street in central London
Vast crowds gather to watch Jeremy Clarkson and other supporters give speeches
However, after the political row blew up on Tuesday night, the BBC changed the web article to remove this sentence.
Yet while the article has a section at the end informing readers about revisions – such as stating it had been updated on November 4 to correct hectares to acres – it made no reference to deleting the sentence about the government being ‘likely’ to be right.
The article also cites the claim that 70,000 farms will be affected, but adds that ‘it is not necessarily the right number to use’.
Critics have accused Chancellor Rachel Reeves and Environment Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) Secretary Steve Reed of not taking into account the effect of the rule changes to equipment such as tractors which many farmers claim tax breaks on under ‘business property relief’ (BPR).
Jeremy Clarkson joined thousands of farmers outside Downing Street protesting against changes to agricultural inheritance tax rules on farms valued above £1million
British television presenter and farm owner Jeremy Clarkson puts his fingers in his ears at the protest
The BBC Verify video quotes ‘official figures’ but the chart it displays shows only APR, not BPR.
The video says: ‘In 2022 around 500 claims were made for agricultural inheritance tax exemption’. The BBC Verify reporter concludes: ‘So the true share of farms affected going forward is likely to be much closer to the Treasury estimates’.
Frank Smith, managing partner at Frank Smith & Co Solicitors, a specialist firm advising farming families, said: ‘Urban MP and Defra secretary Steve Reed claims just 500 farmers a year will be impacted by the changes announced in the budget, but their calculations have not taken BPR into account.’
Regarding BBC Verify, he said: ‘That’s the info the BBC has been fed by the government, they haven’t verified it that well, and they rely on it – and the viewers rely on it.’
A Treasury spokesman confirmed that the 500 figure related to estates claiming APR, but said the number of estates involving either APR, or BPR or both was around 2,000 in total – still vastly short of the 70,000 farms claimed by rural groups. The BBC said its analysis had included BPR.
A joint statement from Ms Reeves and Mr Reed said: ‘Farmers are the backbone of Britain, and we recognise the strength of feeling expressed by farming and rural communities in recent weeks.
We are steadfast in our commitment to Britain’s farming industry because food security is national security.
It’s why we are investing £5 billion into farming over the next two years – the largest amount ever directed towards sustainable food production, rural economic growth and nature’s recovery in our country’s history.’
