With the UK Government’s Autumn Budget taking place on 28 October, the Ulster Farmers’ Union (UFU) has launched its ‘A Budget to Back Farming’ campaign, setting out a package of measures aimed at improving farm business viability, encouraging investment, and providing greater long-term certainty for Northern Ireland agriculture.
The UFU’s pre-Budget submission to HM Treasury argues that farmers are ready to invest in productivity, infrastructure, environmental improvements and the next generation, but this is dependent on having a tax and funding system which recognises the reality of running a modern farm business.
At the centre of the campaign is the UFU’s call for the Government to fully reverse the changes to Agricultural Property Relief and Business Property Relief. Since April 2026, 100% relief has been limited to the first £2.5 million of combined qualifying agricultural and business assets per individual, with 50% relief thereafter. Independent data shows that restricting APR/BPR, even despite the Government’s partial U-turn late last year, exposes genuine working owner-occupied family farms, especially given the higher-than-average land values in the province.
The submission also highlights the importance of securing adequate future agricultural funding for Northern Ireland. The £329.4 million annual allocation which replaced EU CAP funding has remained broadly fixed in cash terms despite significant inflation. Based on CPI, approximately £432 million per year would now be required to restore its 2020 purchasing power. The Union is calling for the baseline to be uplifted to at least this level with annual inflationary increases.
Another immediate priority is red diesel, as the temporary reduction in duty to 6.48p per litre is currently due to end on 31 December, before the rate rises gradually in 2027. With red diesel a major unavoidable input cost, the UFU is asking the Chancellor to retain the present rate permanently, or at least for the duration of the Government’s spending review period in 2028-29.
Creating the conditions for farm families to invest is a recurring theme in the submission. In line with the other UK farming unions, the UFU wants the Annual Investment Allowance (AIA) increased from £1 million to £5 million, alongside much faster tax relief for investment in farm infrastructure. At present, qualifying plant and machinery can receive 100% relief through AIA, while expenditure falling under the Structures and Buildings Allowance is generally relieved at only 3% per year.
There is also a specific reform to Capital Gains Tax roll-over relief where farmland is compulsorily acquired for infrastructure. The UFU is seeking to extend the normal reinvestment window from three years to at least six and allow compensation to be reinvested more flexibly in productive farm improvements, rather than restricting relief largely to the purchase of replacement land.
Other asks include protecting farmers using averaging relief from the expansion of Making Tax Digital, suspending the introduction of the UK Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism for fertiliser until its impact is properly understood, introducing tax incentives for long-term agricultural leasing, and ensuring agriculture is properly recognised in negotiations over a permanent Northern Ireland Fiscal Framework.
The campaign is focused on a straightforward principle, that agriculture needs the confidence and financial capacity to invest in their business. The UFU will be using the period ahead of 28 October to press MPs, Peers, and the Government to ensure that the particular needs of Northern Ireland’s family farms are recognised in decisions taken by the Chancellor.
