George Gittus, of Symonds Farm, in Great Saxham, near Bury St Edmunds, issues plea to public and Government after day of action
A farmer has issued a plea to the public and the Government after a nationwide day of action.
George Gittus, of Symonds Farm in Great Saxham, helped to organise the event in Bury, and told SuffolkNews today unless there are change on the taxes, British farming runs a real risk of disappearing.
He and his family have owned Symonds Farm since 1957.
He said: “I feel the event was a great success. I think we distributed more than 700 leaflets explaining our position and what we would like people to do, which is ask the Government to reconsider.
“People were keen to do so and understood why we’re doing what we’re doing.
“If you value British food, if you value farmers to keep farming and want the countryside to look as it does, either everybody has got to pay more for food or allow the tax breaks to continue.
“Once we’re gone, we’re gone.”
Mr Gittus is an NFU Suffolk Council representative and NFU Regional vice chair for the East of England.
He said the proposed new taxes are already affecting his and other people’s farms as it is hindering their ability to invest in their businesses and their properties.
“Anyone who proposed it (the tax) doesn’t know how business works; it’s making every single level of investment be reassessed until we know the full impact.”
Mr Gittus said the impact extends further than the farms and farmers themselves to supply chains, such as farming infrastructure businesses whose books have stalled due to their inability to invest.
Up and down the country yesterday, farmers gathered to thank the British public for their support and to show politicians their campaign will not stop until the proposed tax is subject to proper consultation and scrutiny, the NFU said.
The organisation said up to 75 per cent of farms will be affected by the tax.
Mr Gittus added there are a lot of aspects of community involvement in farming, such as with churches and village halls, and people may not realise the wide reach and impact the farming community has until it is gone.
