Susanna Siddell
Guest Reporter
Farmers have threatened to co-ordinate a "sewage sludge strike" after the Chancellor outlined plans to impose inheritance tax on their properties.
Many took to online forums to form the plot in the hope that the strike would impact the UK's water companies, leading to a build-up of waste across the country.
Produced by extracting liquid from human waste, biosolids, otherwise known as "sewage sludge", are extremely effective fertilisers used by farmers.
In a mutually beneficial exchange, farmers filter 3.6 million tonnes of sewage sludge out of water treatment plants each year, spreading it across their land.
This arrangement has meant that water companies have saved on the cost of disposal, as well as improve their environmental impact.
However, farmers across online forums have discussed the possibility of a sewage strike, which would cause water companies to have to find other more costly ways of disposing of the waste, The Telegraph has reported.
This news has followed widespread fears that Reeves' new inheritance tax raid would trigger a mental health crisis across the sector.
Expressing their distaste for Reeves' Budget, a farmer from Dartmoor shared online: "If you truly want to be seen to put your children’s futures first, then now this week is the time to phone your sludge supplier [and] put a temporary halt on all deliveries.
.LATEST DEVELOPMENTS:
"If enough of you do this, we have a reasonable chance of changing Government policy. If you don’t, we have no hope at all and will only have ourselves to blame.
"Let’s see who deserves recognition for doing something unselfish for the greater good of all."
Additionally, several farmers have shared that they have contacted the National Farmers' Union (NFU) to support the industrial action.
NFU President Tom Bradshaw has confirmed that the union received calls from senior farmers, who expressed fears that they had now become a "burden" on their families, who would be left with unpayable bills after their death.
Chairman of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee Alistair Carmichael said: "The impression I get from government ministers is that they think that the outrage that is felt by farmers about this issue is confected.
"The very fact a sewage strike is being considered shows how deep that anger is."
Insisting that the Government's commitment to the country's farmers is "steadfast", a Government spokesman said: "We understand concerns about changes to Agricultural Property Relief and the Defra Secretary of State and Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury met with NFU President Tom Bradshaw today.
"Ministers made clear that the vast majority of those claiming relief will not be affected by these changes. They will be able to pass the family farm down to their children just as previous generations have always done.
"This is a fair and balanced approach that protects the family farm while also fixing the public services that we all rely on. We remain committed to working with the NFU and listening to farmers."
Find Out More...
Many took to online forums to form the plot in the hope that the strike would impact the UK's water companies, leading to a build-up of waste across the country.
Produced by extracting liquid from human waste, biosolids, otherwise known as "sewage sludge", are extremely effective fertilisers used by farmers.
In a mutually beneficial exchange, farmers filter 3.6 million tonnes of sewage sludge out of water treatment plants each year, spreading it across their land.
This arrangement has meant that water companies have saved on the cost of disposal, as well as improve their environmental impact.
However, farmers across online forums have discussed the possibility of a sewage strike, which would cause water companies to have to find other more costly ways of disposing of the waste, The Telegraph has reported.
This news has followed widespread fears that Reeves' new inheritance tax raid would trigger a mental health crisis across the sector.
Expressing their distaste for Reeves' Budget, a farmer from Dartmoor shared online: "If you truly want to be seen to put your children’s futures first, then now this week is the time to phone your sludge supplier [and] put a temporary halt on all deliveries.
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"If enough of you do this, we have a reasonable chance of changing Government policy. If you don’t, we have no hope at all and will only have ourselves to blame.
"Let’s see who deserves recognition for doing something unselfish for the greater good of all."
Additionally, several farmers have shared that they have contacted the National Farmers' Union (NFU) to support the industrial action.
NFU President Tom Bradshaw has confirmed that the union received calls from senior farmers, who expressed fears that they had now become a "burden" on their families, who would be left with unpayable bills after their death.
Chairman of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee Alistair Carmichael said: "The impression I get from government ministers is that they think that the outrage that is felt by farmers about this issue is confected.
"The very fact a sewage strike is being considered shows how deep that anger is."
Insisting that the Government's commitment to the country's farmers is "steadfast", a Government spokesman said: "We understand concerns about changes to Agricultural Property Relief and the Defra Secretary of State and Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury met with NFU President Tom Bradshaw today.
"Ministers made clear that the vast majority of those claiming relief will not be affected by these changes. They will be able to pass the family farm down to their children just as previous generations have always done.
"This is a fair and balanced approach that protects the family farm while also fixing the public services that we all rely on. We remain committed to working with the NFU and listening to farmers."
Find Out More...