The DUP’s agriculture spokesperson in Westminster, Carla Lockhart MP, has welcomed the report, saying: “The OBR – a body which oversees government fiscal policies – has reported that the Chancellor’s planned changes to inheritance tax will disadvantage older farmers, leaving it difficult for them to restructure their affairs accordingly.

“Yet again the Labour government’s budget is being called into question. How long can the Prime Minister and HM Treasury continue on this trajectory? The changes to historic business property relief and inheritance tax are set to decimate family farms, threaten food security and jeopardise the UK agri-food sector.

“Somebody somewhere has got their calculations very wrong. The OBR report is also ‘highly uncertain’ whether the proposed IHT plans will raise the £500m as estimated by the Treasury. 

The Upper Bann MP added: “Since the October budget the agri-food industry’s message has been very clear. The proposed £1m threshold, with a 20% tax liability above that, is on course to ‘carve up’ farms that have been in families for generations.

“There is no doubt the government has been misguided and its figures are flawed, but the Chancellor refuses to listen to reason or meet with industry leaders and farming unions.

“Meanwhile post April 2026 farmers are faced with the threat of losing their livelihoods and having to sell land to meet tax obligations. This is extremely alarming, especially for older farmers, who have worked for decades under the proviso that on their death, the farm will pass to the next generation.”

Carla Lockhart continued: “The seeds of doubt are growing. Accountants and tax advisers have been picking away at the flawed figures, while the government continues to try and put a positive spin on the reality. DAERA figures estimate that one-third of farms and 75% of dairy farmers in Northern Ireland will be impacted.

“The CBI (Confederation of British Industry) has described the farm tax grab as a ‘disaster waiting to happen’, forecasting job losses and a further downturn in the economy. Pro-labour tax expert, Dan Neidle, has also called for the government to find reverse gear on its current plans and raise the threshold to £20m.

“Major supermarkets are now coming out in support of farmers in a bid to safeguard the nation’s food security.

“It is time for a major re-think, otherwise Sir Keir Starmer’s legacy will be the destruction of the UK’s agri-food sector which contributes more than £148 billion to the economy and employs over four million people.”