Minette Batters urges PM to listen to her successor on IHT in her maiden speech in the House of Lords

Former NFU president Minette Batters has used her maiden speech in the House of Lords to urge the Government to listen to her successor Tom Bradshaw on the proposed changes to Inheritance Tax in the Autumn Budget.

Baroness Batters dedicated her speech to the ‘many farmers I have met across the world, and especially the 46,000 members of the NFU that I was privileged to lead'.

The former NFU president is a fifth-generation tenant farmer in Wiltshire and was the first woman to lead the NFU.

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She said 2020 was the standout year in her tenure.

Food security

"In March we left our NFU headquarters in Stoneleigh Park, Warwickshire, to work from home. My twins' GCSEs were cancelled.

"Prime Minister Boris Johnson and President Trump planned to conclude a UK-US trade deal by August."

She said at the beginning of lockdown the Government had thought they would run out of food.

"I remember a text from a Government Minister that read: You can have as many people and as much money as you want, as long as we do not run out of food.

"For a few days, the reality of being seven meals from anarchy was very real," she said.

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"Farmers were key workers then, and I am enormously proud of the role the NFU played, working with Government, to keep the country fed."

Brexit

She highlighted the transition in farming since Brexit, before concentrating on food security.

"Our history is littered with either embracement or abandonment of whether producing our own food matters," she said.

"The Arab spring was the last time that Government advisers and scientists gave serious thought to our role in delivering global food security. Post the financial crash of 2007 to 2009, the markets took off.

"Since then, the line given by officials is that the UK is a wealthy nation and can afford to import its food.

"The increases in farm taxes proposed in the Budget are a symptom of this all-too-often desk-based advice to Ministers."

Inheritance Tax

She urged the Government to listen to Tom Bradshaw and pause and consult with industry.

"With so much change in the last six years, farming and our food security are at a major crossroads. Much will depend on the Government delivering their manifesto commitment to make food security national security."

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She also called on the Government to invest in and incentivise the optimisation of sustainable food production, as farmers would need access to the best science and innovation to feed a growing global population with fewer resources.

Food production

"The UK, with its maritime climate, should be producing much more of its own food.

"With targets for renewable energy, housing, nature, trees, water and air, it is wrong that we still have no target for food. Instead, we continue to rely on countries such as Spain and north African countries to produce so much of our salads, fruit and vegetables.

"It is unsustainable, both for them and for us."

Baroness Batters also highlighted her experience in the catering sector, saying she was passionate about good food and cooking from scratch.

"Learning how to cook, for every child, should be as fundamental as maths and English in the school curriculum. The principles of a garden city should be applied to every urban area – orchards, allotments and beautiful green spaces for everyone, everywhere."