This page was initially published on 21 November 2024, and updated to include more recent actions on February 27 2025.
As a rural MP, standing up for farmers is a key part of my role, and I’ve made it a top priority both in Parliament and in the constituency.
Speaking up for farming in Parliament
Since becoming a parliamentary candidate, I have met with many local farmers and consistently engaged with key stakeholders, including the NFU and the FUW at meetings and local shows. I have used insights from these discussions to inform my work as an MP, dedicating around a quarter of my speaking opportunities in the House of Commons chamber just to farming issues. I have attended every Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Question in the Chamber and Urgent Question on agriculture.
Ahead of the autumn budget, I wrote to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves, on behalf of concerned farmers in my constituency stating that I did not support changes to APR and urging her to protect and invest in the farming community. I mentioned this at a pre-election hustings at the Welshpool Livestock Market. On 18 November 2024, I also wrote to the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Steve Reed, regarding agricultural land and have shared this correspondence with constituents.
I have been a steadfast advocate for farmers in Parliament, consistently raising your concerns in the House of Commons. In early October, I spoke out in the opposition day debate on farming and food security, where I strongly criticised Conservative trade deals with Australia and New Zealand that are undermining UK farmers.
On 5 November 2024, I again highlighted the vital importance of farming in the Autumn Budget debate, urging for greater support to safeguard this cornerstone of our economy and food security.
Following the Budget, I spoke with both the NFU and the FUW to gather their views on its implications for the agricultural sector. I have received many letters from individual constituents expressing their concerns, which I am grateful for.
On 29 October 2024, I attended the NFU Fellowship breakfast, the first event of the NFU’s Food and Farming Fellowship Scheme. This is a long-term initiative running until late 2025, and it is worth highlighting that I am one of only two Welsh MPs to be involved. I attended the second event on 6 December 2024, a visit to Oaklands farm just over the border in Shropshire.
On 28 January 2025, I spoke in a Westminster Hall Debate on the APR policy, and called on the Treasury to implement two key mitigations: raising the threshold to properly target those who buy agricultural land solely to dodge inheritance tax while minimising the impact on family farms, and an exemption for farmers too late in life to adequately plan for the changes. Please see this reported in Farmers Guardian here.
On 30 January 2025, I co-signed, along with 45 other Labour MPs, a letter to the ‘big six’ supermarkets, criticising the business practices which allow them to make bumper profits at the expense of farmers.
I am a member of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Farming.
Meeting with farmers in Westminster
When the date of the first farming protest was announced, I liaised with NFU Cymru and the FUW to organise meetings. On Tuesday 19 November, I met several dozen constituents across three different rooms in Westminster. I listened to NFU president Tom Bradshaw speak, and spoke with representatives from NFU Cymru including President Aled Jones, Dairy Board Chair Jonathan Wilkinson, and Clwyd and Montgomeryshire County Advisor Olivia Bennett-Jones.
Constituents then walked with me to near Horse Guards Parade to show me the produce they had brought in to donate to London food banks. I was very grateful for this as food security and food poverty are key areas of interest to me.
I also met with farmers and the NFU again on the day of the recent tractor protest in Westminster on 10 February. I met with NFU Cymru Deputy President Abi Reader on 24 February 2025 to discuss APR.
Public commentary on Agricultural Property Relief
In the meeting on 19 November 2024, I publicly called on the Treasury to publish its modelling on the impact of the policy on family farms, so that farmers can know where they stand and prepare accordingly.
I also noted that there will be opportunity for continued debate in Parliament, which backbench MPs like myself will feed into.
My comments on the matter were published by The Telegraph (First Labour MPs raise concerns over the impact of farmer IHT raid, 19 November 2024) and covered in The Times, The Guardian, Daily Mail, GB News, the i, The Independent, and discussed on Newsnight.
On 18 February 2025, I appeared on BBC Wales Today to underline the importance of dialogue between the government and the farming community in order to modify the policy, following the NFU’s meeting with Treasury minister James Murray.
I wrote a feature article for Farmers Guardian, published on 24 February 2025: Labour MP Steve Witherden on IHT: “I asked the Treasury to raise the threshold to target the tax-dodging multinationals… there is still time for this to be put right”.