Farmers have hoarded land for too long. Inheritance tax will bring new life to rural Britain

One of the baleful dimensions of our times is the way that the conversation about what constitutes the good society is framed by the rich and their interests. A conception of the common good withers; instead it is replaced by the existential importance of private wealth, private interests and private ownership to societal health. Nowhere is this more exposed than in the debate over taxation, and in particular the taxation of inherited wealth – as the debate over the past fortnight has dramatised.

Half a million people die every year. Under the reforms to inheritance tax relief on agricultural land proposed in the budget, about 500 individuals who inherit land worth more than £2m (£3m if they were married to the deceased) will join the rest of society and have inheritance tax levied on their bequest – albeit at half the rate, with an enlarged exemption and 10 years to pay it, concessions not made to the rest of us. How fortunate and privileged are they?

“I will point out that small family farms use family for labor.”

Ranches in California’s San Joaquin Valley have been using non family pickers and packing houses since the 1950’s and before. My family owned a packing house in the 50’s and 60’s. The actual growth and tending in the valley today is many times done by other ranchers through contract. My cousin is in this business there and there are many that do this. An example of one ranch that hires out their work is Tejon Ranch near Hanford and Lemore. It is run by an executive board of 10 people and they manage both a crop and cattle industry. They also manages oil and gas royalties, rock and aggregate royalties, and water assets.

And they are not alone in this. In the beef industry Harris Ranch annually produces and markets in excess of 200 million pounds of beef, making it the largest, functionally integrated beef operation in California. Other cattle operations include Carver Bowen Ranch, Duane Martin Livestock, Orvis Cattle Co., Prather Ranch, Rancho San Julian, San Juan Ranch, Santa Margarita Ranch, and V6 Ranch, all holding far more cattle, calving, and land control than a family can handle. And they are diverse in their holdings.

This is wny there is such a crowding out of the small rancher/farmer in the state. Business has gotten too diverse, too spread out, and too big not to take over.

A large ranch that most people know about is what’s left of the Hearst property just north of San Simeon. They are still an active cattle ranch and at one time owned the land and water rights to 50 square miles of California coastline. They still own the water rights and 83K acres of property in a few locations throughout the state. Far more than the family can handle. And they have a winery and other diverse products. All do except the small rancher who is getting pushed. And the same thing is happening to dairy, nuts, and fruit producers who ar feeling the crunch.

wy69

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