OT Reeves spring statement

[ramAnag]

The thing is everyone gets up on their back legs and shouts if changes seems to work against them (as a former teacher in a unionised job you'll appreciate that) - just like all trade unions object to changes in conditions or inadequate wages in their view

Farmers aren't in a union - well there is an NFU but it's fairly apolitical and more an industry think tank / pressure group for the self employed.

So they protest the best way they can. Interestingly I imagine Swale would defend to his death a union members right to strike yet not a farmers right to protest. This despite the fact the a typical train driver for instance earns more in a year than the typical small farmer. Don't you just love hypocrisy.

Yes farmers who own land have wealth but its only paper wealth as they become unemployed the minute they realise it to cash. The land is effectively their pension fund and, for now at least, pension funds are not subject to IHT - but that's in the toolmaker's son's firing line*. Same with other self employed businesses but the difference remains the need for food independence.

* but fund managers have counter actions on the table already so he won't easily get his grubby mitts on it

As it happens, in over thirty years of teaching I was actually on strike for half of one day but then teachers did seem to get a much better deal between 1997 and 2010 than they have done more recently.

I don’t think anyone on here questions the right of farmers to protest, and that includes Swale, but I do think that many of the protestors we saw in London last year were not typical farmers and were climbing on a tractor driven bandwagon to protect their questionably gained assets. Knowing something of your background you will know more but your Clarkson comment suggests you agree.

P.S. That plot you’ve been left in the Cotswolds…not Chipping Norton is it?

[Geoff Parkstone]

About 10 miles from Chipy and I'm not called Jeremy