Support local farm produce in 2026, UUP urges constituents
Support local by buying local - that’s the best way all constituents can help the hard-pressed farming community in 2026, according to the East Londonderry Ulster Unionist Party Association.
The Association’s New Year message to constituents was issued by its chairman, Mr Robert Carmichael.
He said that the Labour Government’s pre-Christmas U-turn on the Farm Inheritance Tax was “a crucial step in the right direction”, Mr Carmichael also urged the entire community to “rally behind our agricultural sector in pushing the Labour Government to take the giant leap of abolishing this notorious tax on farmers altogether”.
Mr Carmichael added: “The U-turn by the Government to increase the inheritance threshold from £1 million to £2.5 million will bring some relief to our hard-pressed farming sector, but we need the community to help us make the final push in lobbying the Government to abolish this immoral family farm tax completely.
“One key action which will be the cornerstone of our campaign throughout 2026 is to appeal to our constituents to support the agricultural community by buying locally produced goods. In other words, our campaign slogan for this incoming year is ‘Support Local By Buying Local’.
“This is one campaign which the entire community, irrespective of background, can rally around. We all need to eat food to survive, but this dreadful family farm tax has the capacity to send many family-run agricultural businesses to the wall.
“Less farms in our society means less locally produced food, and that could have a detrimental effect on the price of food in our shops and supermarkets as well as the range of food stuffs available.
“The fact the Labour Government has made a small U-turn on the threshold means the farming lobby has the capacity to influence Government policy. One more big push in 2026 and hopefully the family farm tax will be totally condemned to the dustbin of history.
“This is why we as an UUP association are urging the community to make it their New Year resolution to throw their full weight behind the farming sector to rid us once and for all of this terrible tax.
“In the meantime, we in the UUP association wish each and every constituent a very Happy New Year and a prosperous 2026,” said Mr Carmichael.