Swann Seeks Further Assurance on Family Farm Succession Rules

South Antrim MP Robin Swann has welcomed clarification from Treasury Minister Dan Tomlinson that the Government’s proposed inheritance tax arrangements for family farms will apply beyond married couples and civil partners, following concerns raised by Northern Ireland farming organisations.

In Parliament, Mr Swann highlighted the widespread concern expressed by the Ulster Farmers’ Union and the Young Farmers’ Clubs of Ulster that the policy risked penalising farms commonly run by wider family partnerships.

Mr Swann sought clarity on whether the example provided in Government guidance, allowing jointly owned farms to be transferred up to £5.65 million without inheritance tax where jointly owned by siblings, would also apply to other common Northern Ireland farming arrangements such as father–daughter/son or uncle–niece/nephew partnerships.

Robin Swann MP said:

“Representations from Northern Ireland’s farming bodies made clear the danger this policy could pose to succession planning and long-term stability for farm families. Government documents referenced siblings being able to jointly pass on a farm valued up to £5.65 million, so I have pressed the Treasury to confirm whether that same principle would extend to the many intergenerational and wider family partnerships typical in Northern Ireland farming.”

Responding, Treasury Minister Dan Tomlinson confirmed that the policy is not restricted to spouses or siblings and that individuals within a jointly-owned farm business will each be able to utilise their allowance and pass on up to £2.5 million to beneficiaries of their choosing. This means that other family partnerships should be able to benefit in the same way.

Minister Tomlinson said:

“They can each pass it on up to £2.5 million to whomever they choose to pass it on to… if a farm was owned, say, by a brother and a sister, the brother could pass up to £2.5 million to whomever he wished and the sister could pass up to £2.5 million to whomever she wished.”

Mr Swann said the clarification will come as reassurance to many Northern Ireland farm families:

“This confirmation means that farms jointly owned by wider family members will be able to benefit from the allowance, rather than it being strictly confined to spouses or siblings. This better reflects the reality of Northern Ireland agriculture.

He added:

“I will continue to monitor this closely and maintain engagement with the Ulster Farmers’ Union, YFCU and Treasury Ministers to ensure that family farms in Northern Ireland are treated fairly, protected for future generations, and not placed at a disadvantage because of how their family businesses are structured, and that the clarification given to me actual makes it into Government guidance”