Reeves’ crackdown on landowners ‘risks ripping out the heart of rural communities’

Mr Bradshaw said: “That would be good news but what is a family farm? When does a farm not become a family farm? “If they are trying to close gaps in intergenerational wealth transfer by people buying land, then let’s close that gap instead of changing the APR.”

He has previously warned that abandoning the APR could encourage landowners to lease their properties to tenant farmers.

The English, Scottish and Welsh sections of the NFU, as well as the Ulster Farmers’ Union, have written a joint letter to the Chancellor expressing “serious concerns” about how the shake-up might play out.

“Returns from farming are generally extremely modest, with returns on capital used in farming averaging less than 1 percent when the farmer’s wage is taken into account,” the letter said.

“This means the vast majority of farm owners will not be able to afford any IHT charges even if they use up the full return on capital they have used over their career (or) period of ownership.”

Mr Bradshaw’s comments come at a time when relations between farmers and the new Government are increasingly frayed, despite concerted efforts to reposition Labor as supportive of rural interests before coming to power.

As well as uncertainty over APR, many farmers are still in the dark about whether they will receive compensation for flood damage promised to them by the former Conservative government in the spring.

Mr Bradshaw said the industry was “absolutely seething” over the issue after the new government failed to commit to the proposal.

“They are on edge as they wait for the agriculture budget commitment, they are now waiting to hear what will happen to the APR and we have problems with the rollout of environmental plans.

“If things go wrong next week, the industry will be at boiling point.”

The Ministry of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs was contacted for comment.

A spokesman for HM Treasury said: “We do not comment on speculation about tax changes other than financial matters.”