CLA responds to Chancellor's claims that there are no alternatives to her Budget
President Victoria Vyvyan: 'This is not true - we can help her unlock growth'
The CLA has challenged the Chancellor on her claims there was no alternative to her tax-raising Budget, and urged her to reverse plans to cap vital inheritance tax reliefs.
Rachel Reeves is due to speak at the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) annual conference in Westminster today, and will tell delegates no one has offered a better solution to fill what Labour claims is a £22bn 'black hole' in the public finances.
Her Budget measures include capping Agricultural Property Relief (APR) and Business Property Relief (BPR), as well as freezing the farming budget, speeding up the phasing out of delinked payments and raising employers' national insurance contributions.
'There is an alternative'
In response, Country Land and Business Association (CLA) President Victoria Vyvyan said:
“This is not true. There is an alternative to the disastrous inheritance tax reform, but the government needs to be willing to work proactively with the business community – something it has so far seemed unwilling to do. If she needs more revenue, we can help her find it by unlocking growth, instead of choking it off.
“This government was elected on the promise of delivering economic growth, but we’ve seen no evidence of their commitment to it in office. With the right policies, rural businesses could add £40bn to the UK economy. More growth means more tax receipts.
“It’s time to break the deadlock. The Chancellor should get around the table for serious discussions about how to grow the economy, ones that begin with reversing her proposed changes to inheritance tax that will sound the death knell for many multi-generational businesses.”