Rural campaigners urge Andy Burnham to deliver 'rural reset'

Rural campaigners have urged Prime Minister Andy Burnham to reset relations with the countryside, putting farm inheritance tax and wider rural policy at the centre of their appeal.

The Countryside Alliance has written to Mr Burnham calling for a change in approach towards farmers, rural businesses and countryside communities following the formation of his government.

The intervention follows a Westminster event on 14 Septemberwhich brought together farming and rural representatives alongside former Prime Minister Lord Cameron and former Labour Home Secretary Lord Blunkett.

At the heart of the dispute are changes to Agricultural Property Relief (APR) and Business Property Relief (BPR), which took effect from 6 April 2026.

Under the reforms, 100% relief applies to the first £2.5 million of combined qualifying agricultural and business property, with 50% relief applying above that level. Unused allowance can also be transferred between spouses and civil partners.

The Countryside Alliance, which refers to the inheritance tax reforms as the “family farm tax”, has made reversing the changes one of its central demands.

The government says the reforms are intended to raise revenue while continuing to support farms and businesses.

In his letter to the prime minister, Countryside Alliance chairman Lord Herbert said: “Over the past two years an unprecedented range of government policies have hit the countryside hard and alienated rural communities.”

He described the arrival of a new government as an opportunity for a change of direction, urging Mr Burnham “to leave behind unnecessary and divisive politics, and to rebuild trust with the countryside.”

The Alliance says a series of government measures introduced or announced since 2024 have adversely affected rural interests, ranging from farming and rural business policy to horse racing and trail hunting.

Its call for a reset has also been backed by polling conducted by ORB on behalf of the Countryside Alliance.

The survey found that 15% of rural respondents agreed that Labour cared about people living and working in rural communities.

A further 28% said they would be more likely to vote Labour if the party reset its relationship with the countryside.

Former Farming Minister Daniel Zeichner has also called for a rethink in the government's approach to rural affairs, saying: “Labour should be careful about picking fights with the countryside.”

For farmers, the inheritance tax reforms remain one of the most prominent points of contention, amid concern within parts of the agricultural sector over succession planning and the transfer of family businesses.

Mo Metcalf-Fisher, director of external affairs at the Countryside Alliance, said reversing the changes would be an important first step towards repairing relations.

“Scrapping the disastrous family farm tax would be a much welcome first step in beginning to repair the government's approach to the countryside, which for the last two years has been damaging both to rural communities and to Labour’s standing in the countryside,” he said.

“We need an urgent reset across rural issues.”

The Alliance is now pressing the government to review its approach across a range of rural policies, with farm taxation remaining a central part of its campaign.