RICHARD EDEN: On the face of it, there would seem to be few disadvantages to inheriting a baronetcy and a 2,000-acre estate set in the most glorious part of Dorset.
The proposed retirement scheme would give participating farmers in the South West a lump sum payment in 2022, amounting to roughly the same amount they would have received through BPS between 2022 and 2027. David Hebditch, partner in consultancy firm Carter Jonas, said: “In a post-Brexit world, the government’s intention is to help to modernise the agricultural industry to increase productivity through technological advancement and modernisation whilst encouraging succession planning and retirement to ensure that younger ‘progressive’ farmers in the South West are in occupation and control of the land. “The average age of farmers is around 60 and a major hurdle to succession planning is a lack of retirement provision and housing, particularly for tenant farmers.