Welsh Conservatives set to launch its 'Welsh Farming and Countryside Scheme' at the Royal Welsh Winter Fair, as an alternative to the Welsh Government's 'damaging' Sustainable Farming Scheme
Cambridgeshire farmer, Jamie Stokes manages his family's 1,000 hectare arable farm for his 96 year old grandfather. Years of succession planning had set a route for a fairly painless transition down two generations in one step. However, now if his grandfather survives until April 2026, at least 200 hectares of the farm must be sold to pay the tax bill, he says. And having just adjusted the business to survive the loss of subsidies, the maths on losing a fifth of the farm's land poses another major challenge.
This week from ²ÝÁñÉçÇø Guardian editor Olivia Midgley
Another year, another calving block comes to an end, filled with a few surprises and challenges but mainly positive memories